The White Rose of Vermilion
by Kuribayashi
Summary: AU where the cast of RWBY live in a pastoral village community. Ruby spends her days as a Huntress, hunting wild game to support herself and her older sister Yang, a local blacksmith. Time period is set in medieval times in the Kingdom of Vale, right before the discovery of dust. Adventure and eventual romance. WARNING: contains medieval blood, violence, language, and sensuality.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: This is my first attempt at an AU, or Alternate Universe. **

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Chapter One

The buck's ears twitched as a nut fell from the tree. It perked its ears, and cautiously looked around its surroundings before returning to picking bark off the small tree in front of it. Ruby inched forward, careful to avoid the twigs on the ground. She was lucky that the wind was blowing towards her, as her scent would have surely alerted the buck. Ruby knocked a steel-tipped arrow and drew the bowstring back slowly.

Her hunting attire consisted of a red hooded cloak, which she wore over a black blouse with a short trimmed dress for mobility. Including her boots, her outfit was red and black. During the fall, the leaves in the forest turned blood-red, which allowed Ruby to blend in with the red of the leaves and the black bark of the trees. Ruby held her breath and released the arrow. There was a cry of pain. She then slung the bow over her right shoulder and ran forwards.

The buck, who was less than fifty feet of her, lay on the ground with the arrow lodged in its neck. Its left eye weakly gazed at its killer as the small hooded girl approached it. Ruby knelt beside the buck and put a hand on its neck. She brushed its smooth fur and bowed her head slightly.

"It's going to be okay", she quietly whispered as she drew out her hunting knife. A quick slash across the throat ended its suffering. Ruby retrieved a cloth from her pouch and wiped down the blade. She then closed the buck's eyelids and left.

A few minutes later, Ruby returned with her makeshift sled. She grabbed the buck's antlers and pulled with all her strength. The buck had seen many summers, as shown by his immense size and weathered antlers. After several minutes of back-breaking effort, Ruby finally managed to pull the massive animal onto her sled.

She wiped her forehead and smiled. _This better go for a lot on the market_, she thought to herself . She grabbed a coil of rope from the sled and criss-cross tied the buck down to the sled. Next, she took the sled's front reins and wrapped them around her shoulders and waist. With a happy sigh, the 15-year-old stretched her arms and inhaled a deep breath of the cold autumn air before she began the journey back.

It took about half an hour for Ruby to reach the outskirts of the village of Vermilion. Ever since an enormous quarry full of rare minerals was discovered underneath a farmer's field, Vermilion's Warden put as many able-bodied men to work as miners. As Vermilion began to export the valuable materials, the village became wealthier and began to expand. The village's new wealth led to the village being attacked a few times by bandits. As a result, the Warden made it one of his top priorities to upgrade the village's defenses. The aging wooden wall had been torn down and replaced with stone walls 15-feet high. The badly decayed wooden gate had instead been replaced with a steel gate. Eager to show her sister of her haul for the day, Ruby picked up the pace and hurried towards the gates.

"Ah-excuse me! H-Halt!" a guard called out. Ruby relaxed and calmly walked the last few feet. "Papers p-please!"the guard asked nervously. He stood about half a foot taller than Ruby and wore a polished Cuirass, which was a type of plate armor that covered only the torso and neck. A Cuisse protected the guard's legs and he wore a full helm that covered his entire head. The man lifted up his halberd and tilted it slightly towards Ruby as a warning.

Ruby smiled and reached into her pouch for her papers. The Warden had also begun to form a small self-defense force which composed of village volunteers and wandering mercenaries looking for a place to stay until they found a better source of pay. The guard waited patiently, awkwardly readjusting his helmet every few moments. Ruby's hands left her pouch empty-handed. Her eyes widened with horror. She had forgotten her papers!

As a form of identification, all villagers were given papers and required to show them to the guards to re-enter the village. Visitors and travelers went through customs, a lengthy process where all weapons were taken into temporary custody and a report was written of who they were, why they were there, and how long they would be staying. This practice was implemented to practice security and discipline. If villagers forgot their papers, they were penalized each time with a small fee of 20 Lien, an equivalent of two large loaves of fresh-baked bread.

Yang would not be pleased. Her older sister was very stingy with their money, as they weren't exactly well off. Ruby looked at her feet and sighed.

"I'm sorry, I don't have my papers with me today, sir", Ruby said sheepishly as she extended her empty hands towards the guard.

"Ruby, is that you?" the guard asked suddenly. He leaned his halberd against his shoulder where it slid off and hit the steel gate behind him with a _crash_. The guard muttered and began to tear at his helmet.

"Stupid thing." The guard finally pulled his helmet off, and Ruby let out a surprised gasp. It was Jaune Arc, one of her friends.

"I can barely see through this dumb thing!", he whined. "How am I supposed to defend the gate if I can't even see my friend who's standing right in front of me!?"

Ruby giggled as she listened Jaune started to list his complains about the armor he and the other guards had to wear. Since they were small, Ruby and Yang had been close to Arc family. They attended school together, until things changed. Ruby and Yang had to stop attending school to work to support themselves. Jaune finished the elementary curriculum, and decided to follow his father's footsteps and he joined the village's guard.

"-but I still enjoy my job!", Jaune finished proudly as he crossed his arms.

"Jaune, I don't have my papers with me." Jaune let his arms fall to his side and looked at Ruby's empty hands.

"That is a problem." He looked back up to her. "You do know the rules Ruby, right?"

"I do Jaune." She stopped, and then twiddled her thumbs. "Can you please let me go through this one time? I promise it won't happen ever again."

Jaune pulled out a small leather pouch and retrieved a bronze 20 Lien coin. He took Ruby's hands and dropped the coin into her palm. He then took a few steps back and cleared his throat.

"That will be 20 Lien miss," he tried to say in an intimidating gruff voice which only made Ruby snort with laughter. Jaune raised an eyebrow and extended his arm out to her. "AHEM?" Ruby put the coin back into Jaune's hands and then jumped onto him and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you Jaune, it really means a lot to me" she said sincerely to him. A beat later, she let go of him and dropped back to her feet. Jaune ruffled Ruby's hair as he inserted the coin back into his pouch, and she playfully punched him in the shoulder.

"You better remember next time, I don't think the other guards are as nice." Ruby nodded. Jaune smiled at her, and then walked to the gate and called into the messenger tube. "Open the gate please!"

"Got it", a voice replied.

The steel gate began to lift up and Ruby tightened the ropes around her waist again. When the gate was locked into place, Jaune gave the all clear and Ruby pulled the sled forward into her gated home, Vermilion.

Jaune watched Ruby effortlessly haul the massive buck carcass away from his post. He rubbed the part of his shoulder where Ruby had punched him. "Man that hurt", he breathed.

"A-HEM", said a voice behind him.

Jaune yelped and dropped his helmet to see the commander of Vermillion's garrison right before his eyes, Commander Pyrrha Nikos.

"Pyr-C-Commander Nikos!" Jaune stammered as he saluted quickly. The red-haired woman giggled and punched Jaune's other shoulder, knocking him slightly off-balance. She then leaned towards Jaune, their faces mere inches apart from another. Jaune gulped when her green eyes met his. There was something about the commander's eyes to Jaune. They were radiant, and in some ways, almost _seductive. _

"Forgetting something?" Pyrrha bent down to pick up Jaune's helmet. She brushed off the dirt and handed it gently back to him.

"T-Thank you commander!" he squeaked. Pyrrha grinned and put her hands on her hips.

"At-ease solider." Her eyes scanned Jaune from head to toe and she nodded approvingly. "You look quite dashing in your new armor Jaune." She walked behind him and then whispered into his ear. "Better thank Yang for that."

"Y-Yes I will be sure to do so!"

"Good. At-ease."

Jaune exhaled heavily and turned around to see his commander from the back as she made her way to the front gate. Pyrrha Nikos was the commander of Vermilion's garrison, or self-defense force. She was actually a wanderer herself from a foreign land who happened to pass by Vermilion just the previous year and decided that it was the place to settle down. Her skills as a professional mercenary practically guaranteed her a job as the commander. She was highly experienced in defensive battle tactics, something that her people excelled at in her homeland.

For armor, the commander wore a thin plate of armor that covered the waist to the bust with a thin bronze chain mail around her neck, golden-colored cuisse leg armor that cut off mid-thigh, leather vambraces around her forearms, an arm guard bracelet over her left bicep, and a short dress that cut off mid-thigh with dark red drapery wrapped around her skirt that fell to her right ankle. Accessory wise, her hair was tied into a simple ponytail, held up by a bronze circular headpiece that curved over her ears and pointed downwards on her forehead. The headpiece also had two small tear-shaped emeralds that were suspended by a small gold chain at the sides of her headpiece. Her weapons consisted of a shortened spear at her side, that was capable of retracting to form a single hand sword and a round golden trimmed shield that was slung over her back.

"Jaune, you forgot something else." Jaune looked up to see his commander holding up his halberd, which had fallen on the ground next to the gate. She tossed it to him, which he caught carefully with both arms, dropping his helmet again. "I'm sorry!", she said apologetically. She returned to him, and repeated the process of dusting the helmet off for him.

Her tone suddenly turned serious. "Now Jaune, I know that you let Ruby in without showing you her papers." Jaune's face went blank. He stuttered, eyes shifted between his commander's eyes and his feet. He finally sighed.

"I'm sorry commander. It's just that her family is-" Pyrrha put a finger over his mouth.

"I understand their family's situation, but rules are rules. People must learn from their mistakes", she stated solidly. "Understood?"

"Understood", Jaune said quietly.

"As punishment for not collecting the fee, I will have to deduct the fee from your pay." Jaune sulked but nodded.

"I understand."

Pyrrha gently put the helmet over Jaune's head and lifted the visor up. "Just kidding", she teased affectionately. "The next time however, I will have to resort to disciplinary action. Now go finish your shift."

"Yes, commander" Jaune answered obediently. He saluted and pivoted to return to his post. "Close the gate" he called into the messenger tube. As he stepped forward, he looked behind him one last time as the steel gate descended. Pyrrha was walking away, back towards the village center, perhaps to meet with the Warden, or perhaps to check on the other guards stationed elsewhere.

Jaune's cheeks reddened. He was only 18 years old, and held the rank of sentry, the lowest rank in the Vermillion garrison. On the other hand , Pyrrha was 19 years old, but had already fought in a successful military conflict in her homeland, traveled extensively as a mercenary, and happened to be the fourth most powerful person in the village, after the Warden, his wife, and his daughter. As if she read his mind, Pyrrha glanced back at him and smiled. Jaune panicked and closed his visor in embarrassment.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: Please leave a review! Thank you!**

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Chapter Two

Ruby nimbly made her way through the northern half of the village, and into the bazaar; a spacious part of the village dedicated for marketplace activities. As sunset approached, street vendors began to set up their stalls to intercept the large workforce that would be returning from beyond the walls. In Vermilion, the majority of villagers who worked went to work outside the walls; in the mines, the fields, the forests, or the rivers. Those who remained owned specialty shops, like her big sister Yang, who was the owner of her own blacksmith's house.

As she entered a crowded street, Ruby lessened the distance between herself and the sled. She was careful to keep an eye on the buck and the other eye on her surroundings. A group of children rushed past her, rather uninterested in what was on the sled. A group of women gossiped with one another. A bearded man stared at the sled with hunger in his eyes. She passed a small outdoor pub where a group of hunters huddled around a small fire with beers in their hands. One of the hunters tipped his hat towards Ruby. She smiled at him and continued her way. A few minutes passed, and she now entered the southern half of the village which was less crowded. Ruby decided to take a quick breather and pulled her sled to the side of an empty alleyway. She quickly scanned the buck and sighed relief. Nothing missing.

After a quick stretch, Ruby continued her journey south, minutes later, she finally reached her destination: _The_ _Dragon Butcher_, owned by another one of Ruby's friends, Lie Ren. Ruby walked to the front of the shop and rang the small bronze bell that was directly right to the front door.

"Be out in a second!", the familiar voice called. While she waited, Ruby untied the buck and recoiled the rope. The door opened shortly after. Ruby looked up to see a middle-aged Hunter wielding a blow-gun in one hand and a pair of skinned rabbits in the other.

"Good evening.", the man said with a nod and a smile.

"Good evening", Ruby reciprocated. The man then walked north, towards the direction of the Bazaar. She was just about done with the last coil when a black-haired boy exited the store.

"Hello, Ruby", the taller boy said as he wiped his bloody hands with a damp towel.

"Hi Ren!", she replied cheerfully.

Ren walked over to Ruby's sled and raised an eyebrow at the sight of the buck. He knelt down and began to measure it with a tape measure. Just like Jaune, Lie Ren had also been one of her childhood friends. The tall, slender boy was 19 years of age, same age as Yang. He had dark black hair with a magenta streak in the front. According to Ren, this was a custom from his homeland. Like commander Pyrrha, he too, was a foreigner. His family came to the Kingdom of Vale in seek of a peaceful life, fleeing the tumultuous kingdom they previously lived in. He wore a dark green eastern-styled side button coat that black and gold embroidery designs with ordinary steel-colored pants. Unfortunately, a bloody apron covered most of his beautiful attire. But, just like Pyrrha's red hair, Ren's magenta eyes added a shroud of mystery and coolness to him.

"He's gigantic Ruby", Ren finally said, as he stood up with a chuckle. "I'm guessing more than 350. What do you think?"

Ruby shrugged. "He's a lot bigger than the usual, so I suppose 350."

"Only one way to find out." Ren pulled the sled over to the meat hook scale that hung from the ceiling directly left to the front entrance. Small game was taken inside to be weighed and whatnot, but large game required the heavy-duty scale out front. The scale operated on a pulley system, so once Ren hooked the buck's rear legs, a strong pair of hands were needed to pull the chain rope to hoist the buck up.

"Cardin!", Ren called into the shop, which had its door propped open. There was no response. The boy sighed frustration and walked to the door. "Cardin!", he yelled out a second time, with annoyance in his voice.

A beat later, footsteps were heard and an even taller boy emerged from the shop. Cardin Winchester was perhaps the tallest 19 year old in Vermilion, standing at a solid six feet-three inches. The orange haired boy had a tender look to his face. He wore an ordinary grey short sleeved shirt with black pants. His apron too, was streaked with red and purple.

Cardin was a local boy who Ruby didn't know too well, but he was polite and happened to work together with Ren at the shop. "Sorry Ren, I was washing the aprons." His attention then turned to Ruby.

"Hey, Ruby" he said with a wave.

Ruby smiled. "Good evening Cardin." Ren cleared this throat.

"Cardin, let's help Ruby out before the sun goes down, alright?" Cardin nodded quickly and went to the pulley. He cracked his knuckles and began to hoist the buck up. Ruby watched in awe as the boy effortlessly hoisted up the massive buck without breaking a sweat. As soon as the body was a few inches off the ground, Ren slipped a metal cylinder pin in the slot to keep the chain in place.

"Hmm." Ren patiently waited for the scale to steady. "Ruby, do you remember the average weight to your deer category?", he suddenly asked.

"I think it was around 185 pounds?"

Ren studied the scale and exhaled slowly. "This is exactly 405 pounds!", he said finally. "That's a full 200 plus pounds heavier than your average!"

Cardin grinned. "Wow Ruby, that's phenomenal!" He turned to face Ren. "What was the heaviest that we've recorded, it was 390 right?"

Ren crossed his arms and thought. After a moment he nodded. "Yeah...that means Ruby broke the record! Ruby?"

The butchers looked at Ruby who had a blank expression on.

"Ruby?" Ren walked over to her and put his hands on her shoulders. "What's wrong?"

"We might be able to pay our mortgage-" Ruby rubbed her eyes. "-on time", Ruby said, her voice trembling.

Ren patted Ruby's back and smiled. "Come on Ruby, let's get this cut up for you."

Ren got down onto his knees and invited Ruby to climb onto his back, which she did. He carried her in, while Cardin brought the buck down and threw it over his shoulders as he followed.

As they approached the cutting desk, Ruby hopped off. Ren walked around the desk which stood up to his waist and pulled out a drawer full of assorted knives and cleavers while Cardin threw the buck onto the table. The butcher shop was a modest size. It's main room was about twenty feet in width and length, and had a small workplace in the back designated for storage and disposal.

Ren drew out a straight edge knife and quickly went to work with skinning the buck. His movements with the knife always amazed Ruby, who watched intently every time he went to work. Like brushwork, he removed the skin within a matter of seconds from the buck's neck to its knees. Cardin removed the skin and began to wash the blood off while Ren continued. He constantly switched between cleavers, granton edge knives, and boning knives. In what seemed to be only a few minutes, Ren had turned the once magnificent buck into neat piles of bones, antlers, organs, cuts, and fur. Cardin had each of the pieces tied into reusable mesh nets and neatly fastened onto Ruby's sled. The butchers washed their hands and walked Ruby to the exit.

"Hey, I forgot to pay!", Ruby said, pulling out her Lien pouch.

Cardin laughed. "Not today, Ruby. Ren and I agreed that you get today free. Spend the extra 50 Lien on some drinks for Yang!"

"It's not every day you break the village record for new biggest kill in a category", Ren added in. "You've earned yourself this."

"You guys-" Ruby's voice trailed off and sniffed. "Thank you so much."

Cardin and Ren looked at one another and smiled. "It's our pleasure" they said in unison.

As Ruby began to tie her sled around her, Cardin's eyes widened. "Oh, almost forgot something!" He ran quickly into the store and came back with parchment in his hand. "Here's the list of all the cuts Ren made, and the absolute minimum any honest person should pay for the quality of the meat that it is."

She looked at the boys, who were grinning proudly at their adorable regular. "Thanks, I really appreciate it!"

"Now go, before all the good spots are taken", Ren said, pointing at the sun, which was almost down over the horizon.

Ruby nodded and hurriedly jogged off back towards the direction of the bazaar. She smiled and waved back at the boys before she they went out of sight. Ruby took the parchment and unfolded it to read what Cardin had written down. The cuts were listed from most expensive to cheapest per pound. Ruby read the list to herself.

Tenderloin: 10/lb

Sirloin: 9/lb

Loin: 8/lb

Rump: 7/lb

Rounds: 6/lb

Shoulder: 6/lb

Neck: 5/lb

Flank: 5/lb

Trim: 4.50/lb

Shank 4.50/lb

At the very bottom of the list, Cardin wrote:_ If anyone tries to buy at a lower price, tell them that Cardin Winchester from __The Dragon Butcher__ would like to have a word with them._ Cardin's handwriting wasn't the neatest, but it was readable. Until last year, the boy had been illiterate for family reasons. But ever since the Lie family took him in as an employee, Ren had taught his coworker and friend how to read and write.

Ruby reached the bazaar just in time as it was lit up with torches and lanterns. She quickened her pace, quickly weaving her way through to reach her perfect spot to set up. At the west part of the village center was an area that was closest to the eastern gate. Most of the farmers worked in the east, and therefore when they entered the bazaar, Ruby would be the first one to greet them. Because Vermilion's farmers had an abundance of vegetables and fruits for obvious reasons, they usually browsed for meat during the night.

Ruby saw the unclaimed splot, and dashed into position. A man with a pull-cart full of cabbages arrived a beat later. The man opened his mouth as to say something but just ended up spitting onto the floor. Ruby ignored the man and began to organize her meat into a more organized fashion. The man scoffed and walked away.

"Stupid girl", the man muttered, just loud enough for Ruby to hear.

Ruby rolled her eyes. She hoped that it would be the only incident for the night. At the back of her sled, she attached a small tin weight that Yang had made specifically for her. It wasn't as great as the ones Ren had, but they were steady and accurate enough to do the job.

A middle aged man with a baker's hat approached her. "Excuse me, miss?" He motioned to the spot next to Ruby. "Is that spot taken?"

Ruby shook her head. "Not at all, sir." The man nodded, and waved behind him. A few seconds later, a woman of the same attire showed up, with a mule puling a wooden cart stacked to the brim with assorted pastries and breads.

Ruby stepped to the front of her sled to examine the layout. She had the prime cuts and organs of the deer towards the very front, with the lesser quality cuts and organs in the back. The buck's skin was wrapped over the handlebar, while the antlers were placed in the middle. Satisfied, she returned to the back and waited.

She hummed to herself as others around her scrambled to finalize the appearance and set up of their stalls. A fisherman chased after a shellfish that had escaped from its basket prison. The bakers directly next to Ruby rehearsed catchphrases to themselves. Then she heard it. Three short blasts on a horn followed by a long note signaled one thing only in Vermilion: the villagers were back. The bazaar exploded into loud chatter as vendors hastily made the final touches to their stalls. Ruby cracked her knuckles as she studied her surroundings. Many sellers were mentally and physically preparing themselves -an old man did squats behind his stall- for what was known in their village simply as 'the rush'. The vibrations through the ground came first. Then the sounds of hundreds of mouths. Ruby peered around the corner and saw what she needed to see. "Enunciate and talk from the belly, not the throat", she quietly reminded herself. She cupped her mouth and inhaled deeply. It began.

"Fresh buck meat for sale! Prepared by _The Dragon Butcher! _Get your meat! Get it fresh!" Dozens upon dozens of chatty villagers began to pass by Ruby as they eagerly made their way into the bazaar, on the hunt for the best deals their daily pay could get them. Almost immediately, a tall logger and what appeared to be his sons stopped in front of the stall.

The man was massive. He was bald, and wore a fur vest over his bare torso. A sheathed axe was slung across his shoulder. He stood taller than Cardin, with arms twice as thick. "Boys!" the man boomed festively. "What do you think Ma will want for supper?"

"Trims!" the fat one said while licking his lips.

"No, Ma likes flanks!" the taller one said.

"No! She would want the rump!", the smallest one declared as-a-matter-of-factly.

The man guffawed. "Your mother only eats the best!" The man then grabbed his sons and lifted them off the ground and ruffled their hair. "Where else would she get the energy to give me three wonderful boys?"

Ruby couldn't help but smile at the interactions among the family in front of her. It was heartwarming, but her smile soon faded. "Miss, this your catch?", the man said as he dropped the boys to the floor.

Ruby nodded, smiling again. "Yes, it is. Killed and skinned just this afternoon. Fresh as can be!" The man clapped his hands together.

"Wonderful!" He took out a pouch from his back pocket. "How much for five pounds of your tenderloin cuts?"

"10 Lien a pound. Total will be 50 Lien, sir!", Ruby said firmly. The man nodded.

"Sounds fair." He fished out a 50 Lien coin and handed them to Ruby. "I'd like five pounds of your tenderloin then!", he said with a grin.

Ruby retrieved a mesh net from her stash and put the meat into the bag. She put it on the weight, and after confirming that it was the desired weight, tied the front end of the mesh.

"Here you go sir, enjoy your meat!" She handed the meat to the man, who received it with both of his massive hands.

"Thank you miss!" And then he was off, his sons trying to grab the meat away from their father.

There was no time to relax. She cupped her hands again. "Fresh meat, fresh meat! Cut and prepared by _The Dragon Butcher!_ Fresh meat! Fresh! Get it here!"

More and more people began to stop at her stall, as time passed. She had a huge mob of people huddled around her stall, squabbling over the fast-disappearing meat.

"I'd like two pounds of your sirloin!"

"May I have ten pounds of your shank?"

"How much for your antlers?

"Give me all your rounds."

"H-Hey! Save some for the rest of us you fat bastard!"

Ruby worked as fast as her two hands could allow her. As a bag of meat settled on the weight, she tuned her ears to the next buyer's request, and while listening, she finalized the transaction with another buyer.

"That will be 18 Lien, sir! Thank you very much! 45 Lien ma'am, thank you! That will be 42 Liens sir! Sorry, seven Lien is my only and final price. Starting offer for antlers are 100 Lien!" Ruby's mouth struggled to remain moist, and at certain points she had to pause to wet her mouth to continue speaking.

What was so great about Ruby's spot was that when the bazaar became congested -which happened rather quickly- it got more difficult for buyers to make proper rounds. To be spared the pain of trying to navigate through the sea of people which was the night market, many villagers made it a habit to buy from the stalls closest from the direction whence they came from. In this case, Ruby was the first.

After what felt like a chaotic hour or so, Ruby was finally able to sit back and allow her senses to be bombarded by the night market. Ruby's mouth watered as the warm smell of fresh baked bread and steamed corn danced on the slight breeze that traveled through the streets. The sounds of laughter weaved in with the faint sound of fiddles and flutes from paid musicians. The feel of the cool autumn wind blew through the streets, only to be kept in check with the pulsating warmth from the torches and lanterns that were dispersed about the village. Ruby was one to appreciate the simple things in life, and this was one of her favorites.

Ruby's peaceful train of thought was interrupted by a loud_ Clang! _She jumped and turned to face the source of the sound. To her left on the ground was a single steel pot.

"Frederic, be careful with those!" The baker next to her picked up the pot and held it close to his chest as the woman next to him smacked him on the shoulder with a glove.

"Didn't mean to frighten you!", she said apologetically.

Ruby smiled and shook her head. "Not a problem", she replied. Ruby directed her attention away, but couldn't help but overhear the bakers continued conversation.

"Is it alright?", the woman asked as she grabbed the pot away from the man and examined it.

"I didn't see any dents."

"Do you have any idea who I bought this from?"

"That young lady who owns the blacksmith's house near the south gate?"

"Not just any young lady, this was made by Yang Xiao Long!" Frederic scratched his chin and tilted his head.

"Is she a noblewoman?", he asked casually.

"No, you idiot! That lady has been the one who's been making the new armor all the guards are wearing!"

The man's jaw dropped. "You mean-"

"I will not have armor worthy quality steel be destroyed by my oaf of a husband", she said sternly.

The man dramatically put his hands over his eyes. "Oh Katarina! Your words, they wound me! I must now drown my sorrows with beer!"

Katarina kissed him on the cheek and smiled. "Only after we tuck in the children."

"Hohoho, alright."

The couple started to close up shop, as did many of the other vendors around her. Business had slowed down to the point where most of the people remaining in the bazaar were there for social reasons. Ruby decided now was the right time to count her earnings. She knelt down and quietly emptied her pouch of all the Lien she had earned.

She worked fast, eyes flashing to her front and her sides every few seconds or so. _100. 100. 100. 100. 100. _Ruby pushed a group of 500 Lien to one corner. She repeated these steps until she had four stacks of 500 and a lesser pile of 100 ought Lien. Ruby shoved the Lien back into her pouch as fast as she could. She double knotted the bag and placed it at the bottom of her larger leather knapsack. Ruby gulped. In one night, she had earned over 2,100 Lien! Ruby's regular catch consisted of squirrels and rabbits that never amassed over 200 Lien or so at the night bazaar. Whenever she was lucky and managed to kill an adult deer, she never passed the 1,400 Lien mark. In the same night, she had beaten the village's record of heaviest kill in the deer category _and_ beat her personal record of profit.

Ruby grabbed her cloak and smothered her face with it, just in time before she let out a scream of joy. Ruby tilted her head back and faced the sky, letting out a triumphant sigh of relief. "Thank you. Thank you", she whispered. A lone tear rolled down her cheeks, which she wiped away with her sleeve. She looked down at her stand. Aside from the five pounds of tenderloin meat Ruby had set aside for herself and Yang, there was only two slices of tenderloin left for sale. She decided to take those too, to celebrate her wild success.

She retrieved the mesh net from her leather bag and stuffed the last two slabs of meat in. Ruby disassembled the small weight and returned it back to her bag, followed by the meat. Within a few minutes, she was ready to go. It was time to go home.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Please leave a review. Thank you!**

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Chapter Three

Ruby wrapped her cloak around her mouth as the frigid air stung her lungs. Cold and hungry, Ruby wanted nothing more than to listen to Yang's stories about work by the fire with a bowl of hot stew.

It was late by the time Ruby reached her home. The front of the blacksmith's house had a small lamp lit next to the neatly painted title of Yang's business, _Celica Ironworks._ With their joint salaries, the sisters managed to scrape up enough extra money to pay for an official paint job. Below the bright gold text was a Yang's logo, a burning flame. They had purchased the blacksmith's house just the previous year and ever since then, Ruby and Yang had struggled to keep their assets in the positive.

Ruby and Yang's parents didn't leave much for them. When Yang turned 18, she inherited from the Church the money set aside for them: a mere 4000 Lien. Desperate for a home and a business she was confident she would excel in, Yang stumbled upon the blacksmith house that had belonged to an elderly man who passed away. The property's landlord offered Yang a deal: she would pay a down payment of 4000 Lien instead of 10,000, and instead of the 1,500 Lien a month mortgage, she would have to pay 1,600 to pay off the rest of the price of 96,000 Lien within five years. The blacksmith's house would cost them 100,000 Lien in total.

When they started, Yang struggled to get her business off the ground. Failure to pay the mortgage on time the first few months resulted in late fees of 300 Lien. Ruby had to stop attending school and instead try to support her sister any way she could. At first Yang tried to teach Ruby how to work with metals, but she ended up hurting the business. When she wasn't defiling the ore needed for smithing, Ruby struggled immensely to keep up with Yang's pace, as she lacked the physical strength and stamina required to perform metalwork efficiently.

Ruby went around town looking for work, only to come back empty-handed. A group of sympathetic hunters noticed the young crying girl sitting in the streets and decided to help her. With a bow, a set of 15 steel-tipped arrows, and a hunting knife, the hunters took Ruby out hunting with them every day for the next three months. By the end of their ordeal, Ruby came out as an Huntress; a female individual who mastered a variety of skills that ranged from survival in the wild, trapping, and to skillfully track and kill any game animal from pheasant to bear. This was the unofficial female counterpart for the role of Huntsman.

Even with Ruby's new profession, _Celica Ironworks_ remained a fragile business. Months went by and the sisters endured a bitter lifestyle. They only ate two meals a day which usually consisted baby garden potatoes, wild mushrooms, and nuts foraged from the Red Forest. The undesirable parts of the animals Ruby couldn't sell at the bazaar. The occasional donations from friends. To add onto their troubles, the blacksmith house's infrastructure was in a state of decay; holes let in cold air and rats at night.

When it seemed that they were doomed to live a hopeless lifestyle for the rest of their days, the unexpected happened. Yang managed to strike up a partnership with the village's Warden. As villagers were being trained to become sentries and guards to protect the village from bandits and to act as basic security, they required quality weapons and armor. Yang entered a private partnership with the local government which guaranteed a steady flow of income as demand for weapons and armors increased whenever the garrison grew.

As Yang was free to charge higher prices for her goods, and with Ruby bringing home a small yet steady flow of Lien from selling animal meats, the sisters managed to gradually save enough money to renovate their home.

No longer were there holes to let in rats or the cold. They now had an insulated and rat-free home. No longer did they have to share a single deerskin on the floor by the fire when they slept. They now each had their own individual beds. No longer did they have to sit on the floor when they ate. They now a proper dining table with wooden chairs. No longer did they have to use a spit-roast over the fireplace to cook their food. They now had their very own cooking range. Although far from living the lifestyle they both wanted, the sisters were getting there. Slowly but surely.

Ruby ran to the back of her house. Another single lamp illuminated Yang's workspace, but she was nowhere in sight. Ruby tied up the sled to a post and slung the leather bag over her shoulder. _She must be inside._

Ruby returned to the front and fished for the small key in her back pocket. She squinted as she attempted to guide the key into the slot, failing several times. Her fourth try yielded success and she twisted the key. She pushed the door, but hit her forehead against the wooden door. Ruby stumbled back and rubbed her head. "Oww." She pushed the door again, but it didn't budge. She twisted her key to the right, then to the left. She felt the lock being twisted, but the door still wasn't budging.

"Yaang?" Ruby called. She put a ear against the door and heard footsteps. She pulled out the key and stepped backwards. The sound of the door's second lock was heard. It was strange, Yang only used both locks when they had both gone to sleep. Ruby threw out her arms as the door opened. "Yan-"

She caught herself mid sentence as the person who stood in front of her was a young man dressed in purple night robes; their very own landlord, Mr. Thrush. Mr. Thrush was a well-known individual in Vermilion for all the wrong reasons. He was a prolific drunk who often got into disputes with those around him. Greedy and unbelievably cruel, Thrush was a man despised by most of the community. Despite this, the man was considerably wealthy, and Vermilion's Warden could not exile the man, for he was too important to the local economy to let go.

Ruby recoiled and put a hand over her mouth. Mr. Thrush's breath stank of alcohol. "Out of my way, whore", he said with a slur as he pushed Ruby out of his way.

"Excuse you!", Ruby shot back. She pushed the drunk hard, and he fell to the floor, where he remained, mumbling unintelligibly to himself. Ruby spat at Thrush and stepped into through the door and slammed it shut, locking both locks. "Yang?" Ruby called out nervously. Why Thrush was at their home so late at night worried her.

She took off her shoes and ran past the mudroom and into the living room. There, in front of the fireplace on the deerskin rug, sat Ruby's older sister, Yang.

"Hey Ruby!" Yang said, quickly wrapping her yellow scarf around her neck. Ruby dropped her sack and dropped to the floor and hugged Yang.

"Yang!" Ruby rested her chin on her sister's shoulder.

"Someone's home a bit early", Yang joked as she pinched her cheeks.

Ruby playfully hit Yang's hand away. "Well business slowed down and I got really cold!" She looked up at her sister and noticed that she was in her night wear, an orange short-sleeved shirt with short black pants. "Why was Thrush in here earlier?"

Yang blinked. Her violet eyes scanned Ruby's silver ones. "Thrush came over to discuss the mortgage for this month." She sniffed. "He was asking if I was going to be late again."

"He was drunk! Was that all he did?" Ruby's eyes widened as she grabbed Yang's shoulders abruptly.

"As if I'd let that creep do anything else!" Yang patted her biceps and grinned.

Ruby sighed relief. "Oh by the way, where did the Ottoman go?" Ruby pointed at the rug where they were sitting on. Ruby and Yang had two chairs that faced the fireplace. The ottoman was the cushion usually placed in front of the chairs so Yang and Ruby could put their feet onto.

"Oh." Yang said flatly. "Uh, I moved it to the storage room."

"Why?"

"You know how Thrush doesn't take off his shoes?"

"Yeah", Ruby sneered.

"Well, I got tired of having to clean it up after he put his dirty shoes on the Ottoman, so before I let him in, I moved it away."

Ruby's stomach growled. "Oh no. I need to make supper!" She stood up and rushed into the kitchen with her leather sack.

"Ruby, do you mind if I take a short nap?"

"Sure! I'll take care of supper!" Ruby called back. "And don't come into the kitchen until I tell you to, I have a surprise for you!"

Yang closed her eyes. It had been a tough day, and her body was terribly sore.

* * *

"Yang? Time for supper." Yang opened her eyes and saw Ruby standing over her, gently shaking her. Yang pulled her scarf up and stood up.

"How long was I out for?" she asked, rubbing her arms.

"No more than two hours." Ruby grabbed Yang's arms and started dragging her towards the kitchen. "Come on, I made us something special!" At the entrance to the kitchen, Ruby wrapped a cloth around Yang's eyes; blindfolding her. Yang sniffed.

"Oh, this smells delicious! I think I smell some-" Ruby pinched Yang's nose shut. Yang was shuffled forwards and then pushed down into a chair. Yang felt a fork put into her left hand, and a knife into her right hand. Next, Ruby let go of Yang's nose and pulled off the blindfold simultaneously.

"Ta-dah!" Ruby exclaimed proudly as she ran to the other side of the table to extend her arms towards the table, showcasing her achievement. Yang's jaw dropped at the sight. Straight in front of her served on the biggest plate they had, was an entrée of steaming meat coated with hot mushroom gravy, surrounded by sliced garden potatoes. A thin layer of diced parsley topped the meat. Yang looked at the dish on the right. From what she could see, it was an assorted vegetable meat stew. The third and final dish on the left was just a giant tub of steamed rice with cubed tofu on top. A mug of water was next to Rub's side and a mug of beer was on Yang's.

Yang looked at Ruby, who was grinning, and then back at the food. "Ruby...w-we can't afford to eat like this", Yang sputtered. Ruby reached into her back pocket and revealed her fat Lien pouch.

"2,100 Lien." Ruby untied the pouch and poured all the coins onto the table. "I beat the village record for heaviest deer kill: 405 pounds!" Ruby put her hands on Yang's shoulder. "Yang! We can definitely pay the mortgage on time this month!"

Yang opened her mouth, closed it, and then opened it again. She looked at Ruby, and then back at the Lien, and then back at Ruby. "Ruby, t-this is wonderful!", she finally said with shock in her eyes. Yang let go of her utensils and lifted Ruby into her arms. She twirled her little sister around the kitchen, hugging her tightly. They shared a laugh together that was interrupted by Yang's growling stomach.

Reluctantly, Yang set Ruby down, hands still on her shoulders. "Ruby." Yang motioned towards the table. "You really didn't have to do this much for me."

Ruby put her hands on Yang's and smiled. "I know it's a bit too much but-" Ruby squeezed Yang's hands. "-but you work so hard, and I just wanted to show you my appreciation!"

Yang grinned and kissed her sister on the cheek. "Thanks for being the best little sister in the world. Now let's dig in!" Yang sat Ruby down and she returned to her side of the table. The sisters raised their mugs to one another and cheered.

"Banzai!"

* * *

Yang burped loudly as she washed the dishes. Although she and Ruby ate voraciously, an overwhelmingly large portion of the food remained. The leftovers were put in the cellar's icebox, to save for the next few days. Ruby sat by the fireplace in the living room, roasting chestnuts she had found in the forests earlier, as they were one of Yang's favorite snacks. When Yang finally finished placing the cleaned dishes back into the cupboards, she headed over to the living room and slumped into her chair with a groan.

"That tenderloin is working miracles in my stomach right now"

Ruby flipped the nuts with the fire tonsil. "Do you have enough room for dessert?"

Yang sat up and struck a heroic pose. "I _always_ have room!" She then hiccupped.

Ruby giggled. "Are you drunk?"

"Pfft. No."

"Oh yeah? How many mugs did you drink?"

"That's a question that I cannot answer my dear sister" Yang said as she stuck her tongue out at Ruby.

Ruby rolled her eyes and smiled. She knew her sister was a little drunk, and although she hated alcohol, she was fine with Yang being intoxicated, as her sister was silly and harmless, while intoxicated, rather than the all-too familiar behaviors of Mr. Thrush. Ruby took out a chestnut and dropped into a cup of water, cooling it off. A few seconds later, she pulled it out and knocked it against the ground, cracking it open. The warm shells came apart easily, and when completely de-shelled, popped it into her mouth. She chewed the warm, chestnut and swallowed. She threw up a thumbs up Yang. The older sister slid out of her chair and crawled towards Ruby. She opened her mouth and lazily pointed to her mouth.

"Feed me" she said pitifully.

With the exception of Yang intoxicated, this was their usual night. By the warmth of the fire, the sisters enjoyed snacks while their exchanged stories about their day. The topic of crushes always came up, with Yang asking if her adorable, chaste, little sister had found a cute boy yet. The answer was always a flustered 'no'. When Ruby asked the question back, Yang said that she had her eyes on someone, just refused to tell Ruby who it was.

Eventually, the chestnuts ran out, and Ruby fell fast asleep in Yang's arms. Now sober, Yang dusted off the crumbs from Ruby's dress and carried her upstairs to her room. She undressed her, and slipped on her nightgown; a short-sleeved black shirt with long silk pants. Ruby was a heavy sleeper, so she slept through the routine with ease. Yang tucked her into bed and pulled the covers up her chin. She then brushed Ruby's bangs upwards and kissed her on the forehead.

"Thanks for tonight, Ruby."

Yang walked to the exit, looked one last time at her sister and then closed the door before returning back downstairs. Yang sat on her chair and reached beneath the cushion and retrieved a wad of folded papers. She looked over her shoulder, towards the staircase, saw that no one was there, and then returned her attention back to the papers.

**Monthly Earning/Spending Records**

+4500: Armor/Weapon sales to Garrison (78%)

+1200: Ruby's earnings (22%)

**Total: 5700 Lien**

-3266: Mortgage (57%)

-920: Defiled iron/low quality products (16%)

-855: Warden Taxes (15%)

-500: Food (10%)

-285: Church Taxes (5%)

**Total -126 Lien**

Mortgage day was tomorrow, and Yang had gone into the negative, paying for everything on the list except for the mortgage. She was 126 Lien short, and desperately wanted to avoid getting hit with the late fee of 300 Lien again. She dropped the paper to the ground, and another piece of parchment slipped out.

_My delicious Yang, it appears to me that you do not have enough money for this month's mortgage either. Hehe. You know what needs to be done if you want to be spared the late fee. I want to do it by the fire tonight. Do not disappoint me. _

Yang curled into a ball and began to cry. Ruby's much-needed 2,100 Lien came too late, for Yang had taken things into her own hands _once again_ to keep her family from going into deeper debt. Yang touched the fresh bite marks on her neck, where they served as horrible, horrible reminders of what true cruelty in the world really was.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: I have updated Chapter Four as I was not happy with the length.**

**Please leave a review. Thank you!**

* * *

Chapter Four

Clang! Clang! Clang! Ruby awakened to the familiar sound of a hammer striking against an anvil. As she brought her hands up to rub her eyes, she noticed that she was in her night attire: a long pair of silk pants with Rose designs and a sleeveless shirt with the face of an Ursa on it. Ruby looked down into her shirt and blushed; her cloth had been removed. Ever since her last birthday, Ruby's body had finally begun to change, which troubled her deeply. She hated the fact that a woman's body would the wrong attention, and dreaded that soon she too, would draw similar attention. In an attempt to protect herself, Ruby distanced herself away from the common characteristics of women; she cut her hair shorter, refused feminine attire, wrapped her bust, and avoided public attention whenever possible.

Worried about the appearance Ruby was giving off, Yang insisted Ruby present herself in a more feminine way by making her wear a custom designed outfit. Yang had a tailor design something that was easily recognizable as feminine, yet added in features that Ruby would appreciate. The traditional blouse was given a hood and a thigh-length cape, which pleased Ruby as she found that her backside was properly concealed, and she could focus her attention forwards to anyone who gazed at her indecently. Despite having to wear a skirt, the cloak was designed so that if desired, could wrap around the front of the wearer's body as well.

Ruby didn't question Yang's insistence on appearing 'ordinary', but didn't understand the point, as the both of them already were working jobs considered taboo for females: blacksmith and Huntress. Never before in the village of Vermilion, did a female become a blacksmith. The scarce amount of women who did work in the profession were only assistants who carried out menial and insignificant tasks such as fetching water and other supplies for the male blacksmith. For Ruby, the occupation of Huntress was the unofficial female counterpart role of the Huntsman, the most male-dominated profession that existed next to that of the warrior. Even women of stature and nobility rarely trained in the art of the Hunt, as it was considered inappropriate for women. The fact that two orphaned, adolescent peasant girls could hunt and forge on the same level as older men deeply upset some in terms of basic jealousy.

Others would say that they were the antithesis of society's expectations of women.

Ruby looked to her left. Hanging over her open window to air-dry was her hooded blouse and dress. The sun shone brightly, and there was a cool, enjoyable breeze that drifted into her room. As much as she wanted to rest for the day, there was work to be done. The black-haired girl pushed the covers off to see her belly slightly protruded out; the after effects of stuffing her small body the previous night. She groaned as she struggled to get out of bed. She felt sluggish and tired; her stomach wasn't used to eating quality meat, let alone so much.

Ruby stretched and inhaled deeply several times before stripping out of her night attire. Underneath her bed was a long strip of cloth rolled neatly. She retrieved it and let one end fall to the floor. It was ordinary white cloth that was a few inches wide, but around six feet long. Ruby held one end directly over her chest and began to wrap it around herself. Around and around it went, tighter, and tighter. She had to restart several times, for when she looked at herself in the mirror, she could still see the outlines off her chest. The fourth time, Ruby held the end in place and carefully pinned it to the layer beneath. She pivoted on her feet in front of the mirror, making absolute sure that it there was nothing to see. When satisfied, she fetched her dress from the window and began to dress. Her actual blouse, dress, hood and cape were made out of expensive materials, so they were very comfortable to wear.

However, the cloth wrap was not. It irritated her skin and made it hard to breathe, but regardless of the physical discomfort, it helped her feel more secure. Safer. The young Huntress looked to the mirror beside her bed where for a few minutes keenly observed every corner of her body to confirm that she was properly covered. She was wary, almost paranoid about how she looked to others, for after the night of the incident, Ruby discovered that among the people of Vermilion walked Beowolves in human clothing.

Ruby ran down the stairs, two at a time. When she found out that she had overslept, the Huntress immediately sprang into action. The living room Ottoman had returned to its proper place. The chestnut shells were cleaned off of the floor, and the fireplace had been cleaned. Three stacks of wood lay neatly inside the fireplace with three more leaned against the brick structure. Ruby reached the kitchen and her shoulders slumped. She walked over to the table, and lifted the mixing bowl up, to reveal a dish of steamed rice with diced potatoes and meat mixed in. Yang had done everything Ruby was supposed to do in the morning: clean the fireplace, replace the wood, wash the dirty clothes and to prepare breakfast. She placed the mixing bowl back on top and made her way towards the back door.

The sound of metal striking metal and muffled grunts grew louder and louder as Ruby approached the door. She took a deep breath and pushed the door open. Yang's blacksmith's house was just like any other. It was an open-aired workshop with a large furnace against the wall. Directly right of the furnace was a heap of coal and wood. Next to the fuel for the fire were racks full of examples of Yang's inventory. Yang stood in front of the furnace, pounding away at the anvil, sweat dripping down her forehead. She was in her work attire: a leather vest, short black pants, and a short skirt that doubled as a tool belt. Yang's prized golden scarf was wrapped around her mouth, causing her to look like a Highwayman. Ruby waited patiently; interrupting a blacksmith during work was dangerous, whether to the smith and/or to whatever was being made. Yang paused and nodded to herself. She set the hammer down, and picked up a pair on fire tonsils. Ruby craned her neck, to try to see what it was, only to see an outline of it before it disappeared into the barrel.

A loud hiss was heard, followed by a large cloud of steam. Yang patted her left hand against her thigh as she waited. After ten seconds or so, she lifted the tonsil and placed the item onto her work table.

"Yang?" Ruby asked carefully .

Yang turned around with widened eyes. She hung the tonsil onto the wall and pulled her scarf down. "Good morning sleepy head!" She walked over to Ruby and gave her a big hug.

"Mmf!" Ruby murmured, her face smothered by Yang.

"Oops, sorry!" Yang backed off and gave a sheepish grin. Ruby stumbled backwards and put her hands together.

"Listen, Yang-", Ruby started. She looked down at her feet. "I'm sorry you had to do my chores for me."

Yang scratched her forehead. "It's alright, it only took me an hour or so."

Ruby felt something inside her shatter into a million pieces. "An hour?!", she blurted out.

Yang gave an honest shrug. "I'm not being sarcastic, it's fine, really!"

"Why didn't you wake me up?" Ruby asked.

Yang winked. "You were just so cute, I didn't want to disturb your beauty sleep!"

Ruby sighed. "Yang, you know more than anyone else that I need to do my fair share of work."

Yang nodded. "I know. Ruby, believe me, I really do know. Yesterday you did so much for me-" Yang gestured to the blacksmith's house, "-for _us! _I just wanted to let you sleep in a bit longer." Yang adjusted her scarf, her voice grew quiet. "I really don't mind doing a bit extra once in a while."

Ruby walked over to Yang and rested her head against her sister's chest. "Okay Yang, I understand." The sisters enjoyed a sincere, short embrace before pulling away. "But you could have spent that hour working on your things, Yang. Metalwork takes a long time, right?" Ruby pointed to the workbench.

"That's true, but I haven't gotten many visitors yet this morning so it's alright!" Yang grinned as she showed her sister over to the bench to get a closer look at it. "This is the new project that I've been working on."

Ruby stared at the object. It appeared to be a boxing Cestus, a deadly hand-to-hand combat weapon. Users put their hands inside, where leather straps tightened the weapons around their wrist and forearm. A grip mechanism brought a thin steel plate over the user's knuckles when they clenched their fists. They were a infamous common weapon of choice when it came to the Colosseum: the outdoor arena in Vale's capital, where the worst criminals in the Kingdom were placed in tournament style matches where two convicts fought with the designated weapon until one of them were dead.

These public spectacles of criminals killing each other off always drew in large crowds. Only the worst of the worst of society's scum were put into the Colosseum. Rapists, serial murderers, heretics, and the insane. Spectators gambled on who they thought would come out alive. During the first round, criminals were expected to use their bare hands. The next round, they were given the option to use daggers. The third and final round, the option to use a Cestus was given.

Tournaments always consisted of 16 criminals each, with only one winner. What the victor won, was a fresh start, but if he or she was ever caught again, punishment was exile outside of the kingdom's boundaries, where the monsters of Grimm were offered an appetizer.

"Yang?" Ruby asked nervously as she pointed to the metal boxing glove. "Why did you make that?"

Yang was testing the gauntlet out, throwing fake punches at an imaginary target. "It's not for Colosseum use, if that's what you're asking." Yang pulled the gauntlet off and set it back on the table. "It's for the Garrison."

"I see." Ruby looked at the eerie variety of weapons Yang had up for display. Weapons of all shapes, sizes, and origins were for sale at _Celica Ironworks_. Daggers, swords, maces, spears, gauntlets, rapiers, mauls, war hammers and battle-axes were common weapons in the Kingdom of Vale. Yang also forged ranged ammunition such as arrow heads, crossbow bolts and throwing knives. Weapons that originated from the other Kingdoms included claws, whips, hidden blades, and scimitars. Ruby watched Yang begin to shovel coal into the furnace and operated the air pump, feeding the flames with fresh air.

When Yang wasn't reading Ruby bedtime stories of fantasy and adventure, Yang occupied herself with books about metalwork and ore. When she wasn't familiarizing herself with borrowed texts, Yang did her best to strike up conversations with local miners and blacksmiths to get firsthand knowledge about what she needed to become a blacksmith. While they were sure that Yang was out of her mind, thinking that a girl like herself could become a blacksmith, they relented to her persistence, as they enjoyed talking about the craft that had run in their family for generations. Having a beautiful girl around wasn't that bad either.

There was one individual who went the extra mile to help Yang. A local smith by the name of Olaf was so impressed by Yang's inner fire, that he decided to train her physically. Every week or so, they rendezvoused in secret in the cover of night where Olaf assigned a new exercise routine for a different part of her body. This went on for months, until finally the older blacksmith agreed that there was nothing more he could teach her without jeopardizing his own credibility as a blacksmith in the village. Yang understood completely, as the man was willing to risk being seen with a young woman in the middle of the night, especially because he was a religious, married man. The punishment for adultery would be especially severe for the both of them if discovered.

Luckily, that never happened and ever since _Celica Ironworks_ took off, Olaf visited Yang fairly often to check up on her business. Now that she was a professional-grade blacksmith, they were free to trade secrets and to talk casually without the public's scrutinization.

"Ruby?" Ruby snapped to attention to see Yang's worried expression change. "You spaced out for a minute."

Ruby waved her hand. "Oh, I'ts nothing. I should eat and then see what I can get my hands on today." She turned around to leave.

"Hey Ruby?" The Huntress turned around to face her sister. "If you have time, can you do these things for me?" Yang produced a small parchment of folded paper from her vest. "If you don't have time to do them today, that's fine."

Ruby walked over and took the list. "I'll try my best to do it."

"Alright, I appreciate it." Yang took her sister and hugged her again, tightly. "Be careful out there, okay?"

Ruby grinned and patted her non-existent biceps.

"I know, I know." Yang relinquished her hold on Ruby, and the young Huntress dashed back into the house, her crimson cape flowing behind her.

Yang let out a quiet sigh as she watched her young sister disappear into the house, full of energy as always. Ever since they were little, Yang had to take full responsibility over her younger sister. And so far, it seemed that she was doing pretty well.

"Excuse me miss?" Yang whirled around to see a young guard standing outside of the blacksmith's house brandishing a broken sword. "Can you repair this? I have Lien with me."

Yang sniffed and wiped her eyes. "Of course. Come inside, please."


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Please review: anything and everything helps. Thank you!**

* * *

**Chapter Five**

Ruby tied the rabbit by the feet to her belt, next to two others of similar size. It made sense that her luck would dip after such a successful day. Her many hours spent in the forest hunting yielded only three adult rabbits; the only deer she managed to see was a dead adolescent caught in a steel trap. The Huntsman who was responsible quickly came out of hiding when he saw Ruby approach the body. While she only wanted to get a better view of the steel-trap used, the Huntsman jumped to conclusions and proceeded to belittle the young Huntress, warning her that a girls like herself shouldn't be Hunting, but at home servicing her man. Disgusted and insulted, Ruby retaliated by questioning the Huntsman's skill for relying on traps instead of using a bow-and-arrow. She rolled her eyes and left when the man resorted to sexual retorts.

While not her best hunt, Ruby was fairly satisfied with what she had caught that day. Rabbit fur and meat usually ended up selling for around 60 Lien each, which wasn't so bad when it came to total to 180. If she knew that she wouldn't get her hands on another buck, she wouldn't have brought the sled, but she did anyways just in case. With so much food leftover and with an extra 2,100 Lien back at home, Ruby decided to take the rest of the day off.

Most mornings, Ruby left home at dawn and left for home with just enough time to make it to the bazaar for 'the rush', which occurred every night at sundown. It was the village's tradition for those who worked outside the walls to be back inside the village's walls by sunset. Only nighttime supplied the sisters with a sense of solace and rest. But even then, sometimes Yang had to work in the night in order to meet the quota. Every month, a small percentage of Yang's armor and weapons were confiscated by the King of Vale, in a united effort to supply the Royal Army.

The Royal army was the general army of Vale, which was stationed equally among the kingdom's fragile borders. It was the their holy task to keep out the monsters of Grimm from breaching the borders that man had shed so much blood to establish. The 10,000 strong Royal Army was divided into four groups. 2,500 men guarded the Northern, Western, Eastern, and Southern parts of the kingdom's borders. As a result of the high fatality rate at the borders, the King drafted men into service every month to replenish the Army's numbers. Men over the age of 18 were the prime candidates. While no one ever wanted to volunteer to join the Royal Army, tax breaks were offered to families who could muster a man to serve the kingdom. This way, the King avoided public dissent by not relying on a forced draft. If the quota was not met, then the King had no other choice but to rely on the latter.

Vicious, sporadic fighting took place at the borders almost every day. While united under the essence of darkness and death, the Grimm's attack patterns were often uncoordinated and random. Also to man's relief, many species of the Grimm's numbers swelled and declined during certain seasons. Beowolves, Ursi, and Boarbatusks attacked frequently in the summer and autumn, after breeding rampantly in the spring. Death Stalkers and King Tajitsus attacked in the spring and summer, but began to die out in the fall and winter. All monsters of Grimm besides the Death Stalkers and King Tajitsus hibernated in the winter, except for one. Nevermores.

The largest and deadliest among the Grimm known to man so far, Nevermores bred and attacked yearlong, and were easily the most feared. An adult Nevermore was capable of impaling dozens of men at a time with its devastating feather attack. Adolescents were able to destroy stone walls that had been constructed to keep out Grimm that attacked by ground.

Even when the incredibly agile beasts were hit with ranged weapons -which was very difficult- it seldom did anything, as the Nevermore's plumage was thicker and stronger than that of even a fully grown Death Stalker. But what set the Nevermores the most apart from the others wasn't the fact that it could fly, or that it was the biggest, or even if it was the deadliest. It was the fact that they were at the very top of the food chain.

When the tide of battle turned in favor of man, surviving Nevermores grabbed as many men and Grimm alike as its massive claws could hold, before retreating presumably back to its nest to feed. Even fully grown King Tajitsu's and Death Stalkers weren't safe. Soldiers watched in a twisted sense of relief, awe, and terror as the massive winged monsters tore apart everything in its path in a murderous, bloodthirsty frenzy before disappearing beyond the horizon. Since man's birth from dust, there was nothing that struck more fear into man's heart than that of a Nevermore.

Man's first encounter with the winged Grimm was disastrous. Totally unprepared and outmatched, the First Royal Army was almost completely butchered before the Grimm succumbed to its wounds. The few soldiers who survived defected, abandoning their posts. In the span of a few months, all defectors were apprehended and when brought before the First King on counts of desertion, their last words before execution were all the same two words: _never more_. From that day forward, the name Nevermore was coined to describe the winged Grimm.

Ruby clutched her bow tightly. Vermilion had its fair share of men who left for service at the border; good people she knew. Farewell festivals were hosted by the Warden for the men who would embark on their five-year commitment to the Royal Army. Over the years, only a few ever returned. The results were harrowing. Lively men became mute. Pious men turned to earthly pleasures. Courageous men returned as the defeated.

Sometimes, she wondered if there would ever be an end to the war with the Grimm.

* * *

Ruby approached the gate, where a pair of guards stood at attention. They wore the same armor as Jaune and wielded halberds. As she reached earshot range, the guards crossed their halberds together to form an 'X' shape.

"Halt!" The one on the left called out in a sharp tone. It wasn't Jaune's voice.

"Identification please", the one to the right said shortly after. It wasn't Jaune either.

Ruby stopped within an arm's length of the two guards and reached into her blouse where she pulled her papers out. She made damn sure to remember this time, as Jaune had warned her, the other guards wouldn't be as forgiving. The guard on the left took the papers, raised his visor, and began to scan the document. The man on the right remained at attention, eyes on the Huntress.

"These are valid. Welcome back, Ruby Rose" the first guard said with a smile, as he folded the papers and handed them back to Ruby.

"Thank you very much, sir."

He nodded to the other guard, where he proceeded to the wall and yelled up into the messenger tube, "Open the gates!"

Once the gates were raised, Ruby proceeded through the gates and back into the busy streets of Vermilion. It was the afternoon, and the sun shone brightly down on the village. Ruby decided that her first stop would be to the _The Dragon Butcher_, to get her kills skinned. She fished out the other parchment that Yang had given her. Before sunset, she was positive she'd have enough time to do errands for her sister. She untied the string around the document and read out loud to herself.

"Stop by Blake Belladonna's. She said that she had something to give me."

Blake Belladonna was the owner of her very own bookbinding shop, _Belladonna Binding. _She was a close friend to Ruby and Yang. Blake too was an orphan, as her parents had recently passed away the previous year in an accident. In their will, the Belladonnas left everything they owned to their only daughter: inheritance to the family business and all of its assets. The very last request in the short will was that Blake was to marry whomever she wanted, on the condition that it wasn't Adam.

Adam was found as an abandoned baby on the doorsteps of the local parish. The monks took him in and gave him the name _Adam Vermilion,_ the village surname given to abandoned children. While the monks did everything they could for the boy, Adam experienced a troubled childhood. He was bullied by the other children and often shunned for his reclusive personality. When he was kicked out of the parish for beating another boy to near death at the age of 16, the Belladonnas sympathized with the boy and took him in. Blake's parents trained the boy in the craft of bookbinding, and along with Blake, worked together to bring _Belladonna Binding _record breaking sales, which was unusual for bookbinding, as it was not a lucrative business.

At the age of 15, Blake found herself attracted to the mysterious Adam. A innocent romance blossomed between the two, but they decided to keep it a secret from Blake's parents. The couple would be commonly seen reading to one another at the window of their family shop. For once, it seemed that Blake was slowly rehabilitating the boy. But this did not last.

Unbeknownst to the public at the time, tensions flared within the Belladonna household in the following two years. As Adam grew more obsessed with Blake, his violent nature resurfaced. He and the Belladonnas constantly quarreled over her future. Adam wanted Blake's hand in marriage, but her parents refused. They adamantly argued that Blake was not ready for marriage and that Adam's increasing violent nature did not help his chances at all.

It was the last straw for the Belladonnas when Adam gagged them in the middle of the night and attempted to escape the village with Blake on horseback. When asked by the guards at the gate what was in the cart attached to his horse, Adam stuttered and attacked out of fear. He wounded three guards before the fourth knocked him unconscious with a war hammer blow to the back of the head. Blake was found in the back of the cart, inside a potato sack and heavily sedated with a form of non-lethal poison.

At Adam's trial, the Belladonnas asked for exile for punishment as they argued that Adam was a threat to the safety of their daughter. The Warden agreed that Adam was in fact a danger to his people, but decided instead that a more fit punishment was to order the 18-year-old to join the Royal Army.

As the Belladonnas were a highly respected family within the community, and the fact that a delinquent attempted to kidnap their only daughter shattered public opinion about Adam. The public refused to attend the farewell party. But out of tradition, were required to line up in two rows as the boy rode from the center of the village to the gate on horseback. While they wished safety and protection for all who left for the wall, many villagers found themselves cursing and wishing bad luck unto Adam under their breaths. Eggs were thrown at the boy and one man even attempted to pull him off of his horse. When Adam reached the gate, he turned back and roared at the top of his lungs, swearing that he would come back alive to claim Blake -the love of his life- as his rightful wife. The gates then opened and with an escort of ten heavily armed guards, the people of Vermilion wished that it was the last time they ever saw Adam of Vermilion.

Ruby wondered if Blake was doing okay, considering that in the past year or so, she went through so much. She had lost her parents, and the boy she unfortunately fell in love with. Blake now ran _Belladonna Binding_ by herself, and without the help of her parents and Adam, the business began to slowly decline. Ruby quickened her pace.

_Belladonna Binding_ was right down the street from _The Dragon Butcher_. Ren skinned the all three rabbits lightning quick, as usual. Cardin had taken the day off, to take care of his sick mother. After Ruby received her rabbits, she promptly headed over to Blake's. The shop was very well maintained, reminiscent of the wealth that the Belladonna family generated when the four of them worked the shop. The name of the business was written with beautiful gold paint in an italicized, cursive font. Ruby tied her sled to a post outside, but decided to still take in her leather bag which contained the skinned rabbits.

As she entered, a small bell rung.

"Welcome to _Belladonna Binding, _how may I help you?", the black-haired girl said in her usual reserved tone before looking up from her coverless book to greet Ruby with yellow eyes. "Good afternoon, Ruby" she said with a small smile. Along with her black hair, Blake's attire mainly consisted of black. She wore a white sleeveless undershirt with a black vest that only buttoned at the waist. For her legs, she wore a white of white short pants which were overlapped by a pair of black and purple stockings. A black headband with an attached bow rested on her head and a black collar-like scarf was neatly tucked around her neck. At the age of 17, she was stunningly beautiful, just like her mother.

"Hello Blake", Ruby started as she unfolded the parchment from her blouse. "I'm here to pick something up for Yang?

"Couldn't find time to visit me herself?" The bookbinder rolled her eyes playfully, and nodded. "I have something for your sister, yes." Blake dropped to her knees and the sounds of moving boxes was heard. A beat later, she reappeared with a small box in her hand, with a black ribbon tied on top.

"Is that for my sister?"

Blake nodded slowly. "I wanted to give this to her for giving me discounts on the materials I need for binding." It was true, _Belladonna Binding_ was used to having three to four pairs of hands working on binding books, but now it was only Blake. She could only take on small workloads, and customers who grew impatient waiting for her to get to their orders, withdrew their payment and looked elsewhere. To help her friend, Yang crafted metal studs, needles, braces and whatever metal parts Blake needed for her business. The young bookbinder reluctantly agreed to allow Yang to sell her these materials for a discounted price.

"What is it?" Ruby asked as she tried to imagine what was inside the small box.

"Sorry Ruby, it's private. Maybe Yang will decide to show you once she opens it", Blake said quietly.

Ruby slumped her shoulders and closed her eyes. "Aww", she whined loudly, opening one eye slightly to see a slightly flustered Blake.

"Ruby I'm sorry, it's just that this is-" Blake's voice trailed off a bit. She tugged at the ribbons wrapped around her right arm. "-something personal."

Ruby shook her head and grinned. "I'm joking Blake, I understand." She walked over and took the box carefully with both hands. "I won't peek, I promise."

Blake smiled."Thank you Ruby, I appreciate it." Just as she finished, the bell rang and a monk walked into the store.

The older man dressed in robes motioned towards Ruby. "Excuse me Miss Belladonna, should I come back later?"

"Oh, no sir." Ruby replied for Blake. "I'm actually taking my leave now."

Ruby waved goodbye at Blake and left the store as Blake waved back before focusing her attention on the monk with a tattered book in his hands.

"Hello father, how may I help you today?"

* * *

Ruby put the box carefully into her leather pouch and untied her sled from the post with one hand as she looked at the list for her next errand. The list had three errands in total, but the last one was crossed out. Ruby decided to read the remaining two anyways.

"Visit _Valkyrie's Bakery, _and pick up payment for sold baking equipment to Nora_." _

Nora Valkyrie was also Blake's age, 17, and worked in her parent's bakery. The Valkyries were a established family that had been bakers for many generations in Vermilion. They were known to all as a happy-go-lucky family and commonly known for their big smiles and friendliness. Recently, Nora's parents agreed to a five year non-combative role within the Royal Army. They would relocate to a fortified city closer to the border, where they would aid in feeding the soldiers stationed at the walls. Tax breaks were given to Nora's business in exchange for their service to the King.

It was right for them to not worry about their daughter, as Nora seemed to handle the business just fine. She opened her business earlier than almost everyone else, closed later, and somehow still found a way to open the next day completely energized. Ruby admired Nora, as she knew the young baker lived a hectic lifestyle, as breads were in a higher demand than metals.

As Ruby slowly made her way towards the western part of the village towards Nora, she sounded out the words of the next errand slowly as she struggled to look past the scribbled ink.

"A-sk Go-odwi-t-ch a-nd Oz-pin f-or t-est re-sul-t-s?." She tried it again. "Ask Goodwitch and Ozpin for test results."

Goodwitch and Ozpin were a married couple that ran the most respected clinic and apothecary in Vermilion. Goodwitch and her husband Ozpin were formally trained apothecarists and herbalists, and as a result of their caliber in skill, were asked multiple times to serve the Warden and his family as personal physicians. The couple respectfully declined, preferring to have their clinic open to all in Vermilion.

Ruby wondered what business Yang had with them. The couple acquired most of their materials from glassblowers and gatherers, so business was out of the question.

It kept the young Huntress's mind busy until she reached _Valkyrie's Bakery_. As Ruby tied her sled to the post outside, a couple came out conversing with one another. The man carried a bag, and as Ruby passed by him, caught the scent of freshly baked black-rye bread. Her mouth began to water heavily as soon as she set foot in the bakery. It also didn't help her very much now that her breakfast had been digested hours ago. A small pair of bells rung to bring the owner's attention to the new customer.

"Good afternoon, and welcome to _Valkyrie's Bakery! _How may I be of assistance?" Nora sang just as she realized who she was talking to. She dropped the formality, but continued to beam at the Huntress. "Hi Ruby!"

"Hello, Nora." Ruby smiled nervously at the orange haired girl. The young baker wore a black vest with a white overtop along with a pink skirt. A white apron covered her shirt and dress. Along with detached sleeves on her arms, Nora wore a silly chef's hat that stood at least a foot tall. She looked absolutely ridiculous in it, and it managed to get Ruby to giggle.

Nora played with her hat and flashed her turquoise eyes at Ruby. "Makes me look like a professional, huh?"

Ruby cleared her throat and giggled for a few more seconds before returning to a neutral expression. "I'm here on behalf of Yang."

"Oh yes, payment for the new trays I ordered from her. Be right back!" The baker disappeared to the back of the shop in a blur. Ruby waited patiently as Nora searched for the payment. On her left were wooden racks with all kinds of grain based bread was on display. To her right were cakes and pastries that had been wrapped with wax paper to retain the moisture. Ruby closed her eyes and inhaled deeply taking in all the scents of the bakery, causing her stomach to growl. Her next meal would be dinner, which was six, almost seven hours away. _Crash! _Ruby jumped a little when she heard the sound of pots and pans crashing against the floor, followed by a cat's high-pitched _meow_. Moments later, Nora resurfaced from the back of the bakery with soot on her face and apron, a small scratch across her cheek, and her once puffy chef hat had seemed rather deflated, as it drooped to the left. She stuck out her tongue playfully while she produced the small Lien pouch.

"I counted again myself just now. That's 500 Lien", Nora said confidently as she handed the pouch over.

Ruby accepted the pouch with both hands and before securing them into her leather bag. "Thank you Nora."

"No problem! I should be thanking you, everything that I buy from _Celica Ironworks_ lasts really long!" Nora looked to the side of her store and raised an eyebrow. "Say, why don't you pick something you want? Free of charge!"

"Nora, not again!" Ruby pouted as guilt washed over her. "You already gave us over 100 Lien's worth of bread within the last two weeks."

Nora's grin softened. "Ruby", she began slowly. "You and Yang are good friends of mine." Her hands rested onto Ruby's shoulders. "And friends help each other out during times of need."

Ruby shivered as her silver eyes met Nora's turquoise ones. "I just don't want to take advantage of your business Nora."

Nora took off her hat, and threw it onto the counter behind, and then put her arms around the Huntress."I'm doing fine now. My parents would do the same if they were here. Trust me. Please?"

Ruby's face reddened slightly. "All right Nora. Just one loaf."

Nora's grin returned in a heartbeat as she struck a silly pose in front of the rack of breads. "What will it be?"

"Yang likes potato bread, so I-I think I'll get that."

Nora skipped to exactly where the potato bread was located and carefully picked out a loaf with her apron. "Do you need me to wrap this?"

"Oh, it's okay, I can use my bag." Ruby opened her bag as Nora skipped over to gently place the loaf onto the top of Ruby's things.

"I think I should head back home now."

"Sure thing. Say hi to Yang for me?"

"Absolutely."

Nora propped open the door for Ruby as the two girls walked outside and Ruby began to quickly untie her sled.

"Goodbye, Nora", Ruby said, trying desperately to avoid eye contact.

"Come back soon!" Nora called out cheerfully.

Ruby made the mistake of letting her eyes meet Nora's and struggled to avert her gaze as the blush returned. She had done so much for her and Yang, and she wanted to be able to return the favor one day. Suddenly self-aware of her cheeks, Ruby pulled her hood over and bolted off quickly, sled in tow.

* * *

Nora sighed happily as she watched the young Huntress disappear around the corner, presumably back home. She lifted the doorstop and closed the door behind her. The baker touched her cheek and pouted when she saw the faintest smudge of blood on her finger. _What a mean cat_, she thought to herself. _Valkyrie's Bakery_ unfortunately recently had a rat problem, so Nora hired Russel Thrush, a local rat-catcher to help rid her of her problems. In addition to adding a trained cat to live within the premises, rat-poison lay in every corner of the bakery. While the cat did a wonderful job of reducing the number of rats in her home, it also wasn't too friendly towards Nora herself. She walked over to the counter and picked up her chef's hat, which had been slashed by the cat.

The sound of the bells rung and Nora turned around to see a young man meekly make his way into the bakery. He had soot smeared across his face, and a pickaxe was slung over his shoulder, signaling that he was a miner.

"Good afternoon sir, how can I help you?" Nora quickly asked.

"I'd like three loaves of plain rye-bread, please", the miner said shyly.

"Would you like to help yourself?" Nora asked, holding up a sheet of wax paper.

"Oh, um, yes please."

Nora handed three sheets to the man and hummed to herself as the man fetched his order himself from the rack. He brought the bread back and took out his Lien pouch.

"That will be thirty Lien, sir!"

"Here you go." The man handed over a 50 Lien coin. Nora exchanged the coin for a 20 Lien coin, and dropped it into the palm of the miner.

"Thank you very much, miss." The man put away his Lien Pouch and held the three loaves of bread to his chest as he headed to the exit. He went to prop the door open with his foot, but hesitated at the last moment.

"Is there a problem sir?", Nora asked curiously.

The man remained still and silent for a few more beats before turning around and walking to the counter.

"Can I ask you a question Miss Valkyrie?"

"Sure!" Nora answered promptly.

"I saw Ruby Rose leave this place shortly before I arrived."

"Yes, that's correct. What about Vermilion's little Huntress?", Nora said dreamily.

The man opened his mouth and stuttered. "A-ah well, I was just wondering how she is doing with her older sister, Yang. The uh, uh, the blacksmith."

Nora's eyes narrowed. "They are doing fine, why do you ask?"

"Oh, I was just wondering if they are doing alright, financially that is." The man struggled to keep his tone calm. "_Celica Ironworks, _is it? Is she selling enough for the uh, uh, mortgage?"

Nora's smile faded as she crossed her arms. "It's none of your business", she replied sternly.

"Oh." The man wiped sweat from his brow and bowed his head. "I-I'm sorry. You're right, it's none of my business." The man nodded appreciation and began to walk back towards the door.

As he reached for the door to push it open, Nora's arm came down on his, knocking his hand away from the door's handle. The man stumbled backwards, with fear in his eyes. Nora locked the door and flipped the wooden sign from OPEN to CLOSED, as she walked towards the man.

"M-Miss Valkyrie? W-what are you doing?", the man gulped as his back hit the counter behind him. Nora grabbed the man by his collar roughly. The man yelled, but Nora's other hand cupped his mouth, silencing him. He looked into the baker's eyes and was horrified to see an empty, vindictive pair of eyes staring back at him. The friendliness and warmth that emanated from her eyes just minutes ago had disappeared.

"Why do you want to know about Ruby and Yang?", she growled. " Before relinquishing her hand from his mouth to allow him to answer, Nora leaned in even closer, so that their eyes were mere centimeters apart.

"And don't lie to me. I don't like liars."


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: By the time you are reading this message, I will be on semi-hiatus, and most likely will not return 100% until winter break starts (December 11th). I'd now like to take the time to thank everyone who has decided to read, favorite, follow, and/or review my story. Your kind and honest feedback has helped me more than you'd imagine, and it proved to myself that there were people who were genuinely interested in my story, something that I was skeptical about from the beginning. As always, please leave a review: anything and everything helps. Thank you!**

* * *

Chapter Six

Nora dragged the paranoid Jonathan to the front door where she looked outside the window to see an empty street. She unlocked the door and flipped the sign back from CLOSED to OPEN, before returning her attention back to the trembling man.

"You go straight to Commander Pyrrha, and you tell her _everything_ you have told me." She shook him for emphasis. "Understood!?"

"Yes, I understand!", he practically cried out; his eyes red.

With a deep breath, Nora opened the door, letting Jonathan stumble out clutching his loaves of bread tightly against his chest. The man nodded towards Nora right before he disappeared around the corner, eastwards towards the Garrison headquarters. The baker closed the door and bit her lip. She couldn't believe the story she had just heard from Jonathan, the local miner she had just interrogated. It was utterly ridiculous and everything about it screamed insanity to her, but the man vehemently swore that he was telling the absolute truth, and wanted nothing more than to atone for his wrongdoings.

She offered to go to the Garrison with him, but he refused. Jonathan said that it would put her life in danger. When Nora insisted that she should go with him, the man actually drew his pickax against her! He forced Nora to promise him not to follow him. She relented. Nora wasn't intimidated at all by the gesture. She could have easily disarmed the man with her bare hands. What bothered her was the honesty in the man's eyes. He was genuinely in fear for her life, and threatened her to stay behind.

Nora rubbed her face and sighed. The baker tried to smile, to return to her usual cheerful self, but was dismayed when she couldn't muster the willpower to do so. There was something eerie about the tale she had just heard, and it sickened her to her stomach. She wished more than anything that it was a lie, that it was a figment of the poor man's imagination. But if she were wrong. If Jonathan had indeed told her the truth, then Yang Xiao Long was in grave danger.

* * *

Jonathan gulped for air as he dashed through the streets, ignoring the cries of anger of the villagers he bumped into: he had enough of playing the man's games, and was ready to come clean to the officials. He turned right to enter a secluded part of the village, a shortcut to the Garrison. The miner scanned his surroundings rapidly. There wasn't a soul in sight. All windows were closed and deep shadows were cast everywhere. The miner advanced quickly, focusing on how he would confess. He was directly half way through the long street when he felt something.

Chills went down his spine. He had a natural talent for sensing when there was danger around him which came in handy when working in the tunnels. On multiple occasions had he warned his fellow miners to exit the tunnel they were in before it collapsed. But he sensed something far different. Jonathan turned around, but saw no one. As soon as he turned his head to the front his heart sank. At the end of the street in front of him stood the hooded man. Jonathan stopped dead in his tracks and blinked, hard. The man disappeared.

"Where are you going, Jonathan?" the man's voice hissed, echoing around the street.

Jonathan wiped his eyes as tears trickled down his face; his eyes rapidly searching for the location of the voice. "I'm going home!"

The voice laughed. "But your home is in the west. Oh, Jonathan." The voice echoed from a different location this time. "I thought we established that we need not _lie._"

Jonathan's heart raced as he circled around, desperate to locate the source. He tripped over a bench and landed onto his back. "I-I'm not lying!" The miner gulped hard as sweat dripped down his brow.

"I know you talked to the Valkyrie girl. Told her our little secret", the voice whispered into his ear. Jonathan yelled as he jumped back to his feet. "You're a greedy man, Jonathan." The voice changed location again. "What, was the Lien I gave you not enough?"

Jonathan's eye twitched rapidly: he had made sure no one followed him to the bakery. "What you're doing is wrong!" I'm s-sick of doing your dirty work!", Jonathan stammered.

"Are you suggesting that you do not wish to continue?", the voice asked with amusement in his voice.

"Damn you!", the miner shot back. "I know what you're up to! I talked to Olaf a-and he told me everything!" Jonathan pointed a finger accusingly at a random direction. "You, you bribed him into teaching Yang the wrong way in determining if ore has high iron levels or not, and then bribed the entire Miner's Guild into giving Olaf all of our lesser quality ore, which he then sells to the girl!" The man began to chuckle but Jonathan ignored him. "You even went after the Warden's manager of commerce!" The miner paused to catch his breath. "Co-co-coer...forced him into persuading the Warden to partner with Yang."

The chuckle grew into a sinister cackle. "My dear miner, you're not as dull as I took you for! Please! Do continue!"

Jonathan felt his blood boil, as he clenched his fists. "It's true that a woman like herself doesn't belong in that kind of business but-

"But?" the voice interrupted sarcastically. "What is it Jonathan, do you fancy the woman?" the man's voice grew suggestive.

"G-go to hell! You're-you're trying to fail her business, b-by decreasing her profit while her demand increases" Jonathan sneered as he made an obscene gesture with his hand. "I-It seems to me that you're _jealous_ of the girl!"

He inhaled nervously as he awaited the man's response. Seconds went by, and there was no clever retort. Nothing. Eerie silence fell upon the secluded street. Jonathan shuffled forward, eyes still scanning his surroundings. "I was right, wasn't I!"

Suddenly a blast of wind knocked the miner off-balance. "Oh, Jonathan", the voice hissed from behind him. Jonathan whirled around to see nothing. "I wasn't so sure scum like you had the intellect to deduce like that!" The voice changed location once again. "If only the same could be said about your precious Anna and Isabelle", said the man as his voice grew more deranged.

Jonathan growled through gritted teeth, "Leave my wife and daughter out of this!"

"Hard working father suddenly makes more Lien than that of a Guild Master. Tell me, what did you tell them? That you found the money? Or that you took a bribe at another's expense?"

"S-shut your mouth!"

"You probably think that salvation is available, don't you? Out of your other 49 so-called brethren, you were the only one who is willing to give it all away. You are a pig among monsters. Even if you confess your sins, you are eternally guilty. Blood is now on your hands! It cannot be washed away. God cannot save you. You! Are! Damned!"

Jonathan let out a furious cry. "I said shut up! If you don't, I swear I'll-"

"YOU'LL WHAT?", the man exploded insanely."KILL ME?" The man's maniacal laughter echoed through the isolated street.

Jonathan screamed and as dropped his bread onto the ground and grabbed his pickaxe. "Show yourself, man from shadows!" He took a fighting stance as he unsheathed the blunt weapon. "You're a c-coward who can't accept his own envy!"

Jonathan blinked hard, as a bead of sweat rolled into his eyes. When he reopened them, the hooded man stood no more than fifteen paces away. The man appeared to be unarmed, as there were no abnormalities in the outline of his jet-black cloak. The man advanced slowly, step by step. It wasn't made for combat, but the miner knew that if his pickaxe could pierce rock, it could devastate the human body. He pointed his pickaxe at the hooded figure. "S-scum like you don't belong in our village, o-our Kingdom! You belong with the Grim-"

A fantastic spray of blood spurted from the miner's mouth as his steel pickaxe split into two before his very eyes. He let out a blood-curling shriek, "AAAIIEEE!". Jonathan fell to his knees and looked down to see a slash across his chest. The young man's eyes grew heavy as the feel of his own warm blood washed over his cold skin. A pair of feet appeared before him and the miner looked up, to see the hooded figure. His eyes widened as he saw the man's face for the first time.

"Y-you..." Blood gushed out of the miner's mouth. "How?", he whimpered.

A cold blade pierced his heart and exited through his backside. The hooded man grinned as he twisted the blade before pulling out. The miner blinked and once again, the man had disappeared into the wind. Jonathan fell to his side, shivering. He reached towards the blood-stained bread with his left hand, and a single tear rolled down his cheek.

"Anna-" Jonathan breathed as more blood came up. "-my love, I'm so sorry." He coughed violently. "Isabelle-" Jonathan pulled the ring off of his finger and squeezed it tightly in his palm. "Papa's sorry."

* * *

Yang hung up a lighted lantern at the entrance of her shop, as it now grew dark. The guard with the broken sword was Geoffrey, the son of her secret mentor: Olaf himself. During a training exercise with new recruits, a sword was broken and in need of repair, young Geoffrey went to the best blacksmith he knew, Yang. While she forged the sword back together, the guard had to leave to attend his duties. He paid in advance and promised that he would return by around sundown. The blacksmith stretched her arms, relieved to hear some cracks from her sore joints. She let her arms fall to her side and sighed. It was a slow business day, but was glad to have gotten a break from the usual hectic day.

"Ahem." Yang turned around to see Geoffrey at the entrance with his helmet in hand. "May I come in?"

Yang smiled. "Come on in, Geoffrey, the sword is right here." She grabbed the sword quickly off of the work bench and presented it to Geoffrey with both hands.

Geoffrey set his helmet on the table and took the sword. He unsheathed it and looked down the blade with one eye closed. "Your work is flawless, Yang, I don't think my father can make swords with such an edge."

"Oh, don't say that. He's the one who taught me nearly everything I know." Yang pulled her golden hair from behind and began to play with it.

Geoffrey sheathed the sword. He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it. A few heartbeats passed before he spoke up. "Excuse me, I don't know how to say this, but do you mind?"

Yang flung her hair back over her shoulder and put her hands on her hips. "Try me", she said with a wink.

The guard sighed. "There's been a recent problem at the garrison."

Yang tilted her head. "What kind of problem?"

Geoffrey looked down. "The problem is with the armor and weapons you have sold to us."

The golden-haired blacksmith raised an eyebrow and chuckled. "Are they too good for the new recruits?"

Geoffrey didn't smile nor avert his gaze. "I'm not joking, Yang."

Yang crossed her arms. "Well, if there's a problem with my merchandise, tell me!"

He sighed. "This sword is part of the shipment you sold us last week. Today was the first time anyone used it for any sort of activity."

Yang snorted. "That's ridiculous. There is no way anything made by me is that fragile." She pointed at Geoffrey, and then to herself. "Your father personally taught me how to select only the best ore to use.

Geoffrey set the sword next to his helmet and walked over to the heap of ore in the corner. "Can you show me, Yang? Can you show me how you tell whether a piece of ore is good quality or not?"

Yang scrunched her nose. "Is this a joke?"

"Please, just show me."

Yang snorted and walked over to the pile and beckoned for the guard to come over. "Get your ass over here." Geoffrey obeyed and walked beside the blacksmith. Yang picked up an ore and twisted it around. "The luster and hardness of this ore tells me that this is Hematite, with a ratio of iron concentration that often exceeds 70%. It's the best ore our Kingdom has to offer." Yang pointed to the rest of the ore pile. "As you can see, almost all of these ores are Hematite clusters."

Geoffrey rubbed his chin. "Tell me Yang. How do you buy your ore?"

"50-pounds bags from your father. He buys them in bulk from the Miner's Guild and I buy my supplies from him." Yang rolled her eyes when she saw the suspicious Geoffrey eye the bag. "I even ask for bags that only contain ore from ironstone formations; which are ore that are in excess of-"

"15% iron concentration. I know." Geoffrey finished for her.

"How did you know that?"

"Just because I didn't choose to be a blacksmith like my father, doesn't mean I'm clueless in this profession, Yang", Geoffrey stated calmly. Yang scoffed as the young Guard continued to glance back and forth between the ore and the bag, which clearly stated in black ink _Ironstone formation ore._ Geoffrey's eyes narrowed. "I don't know how to tell this to you."

"Just spit it out, you can't offend me any more than you have already."

"Yang, the ore you have bought are not from ironstone formations, but iron formations."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Hah? Why would I do that? Iron formations only yield less than 15% iron concentrations. I have the money, so I obviously chose to buy the better quality ore."

Geoffrey ran his hands through the ore. "No, that can't be. All of these ore are black shale, which only come from iron formations, not ironstone."

"Are you stupid?" A passerby stopped to look inside the blacksmith's house before moving on. Yang lowered her voice, "I already told you, these are hematite ores." Yang crossed her arms and blew out an angry puff of air. "If I'm wrong, then your father has taught me wrong all this time, and that's pig's shit."Geoffrey didn't flinch at Yang's use of the highly inappropriate term that was used to describe the totally ridiculous. Yang dropped her arms. "My God, you really do believe I've been lied to."

Geoffrey bit his lip and rubbed his temples as he scanned the blacksmith's house. "Do you have any books? Surely you didn't base all your knowledge off of him?"

Yang began to panic. "I-Ive talked to other blacksmiths and read a few books, but-"

"But?", Geoffrey said impatiently.

"But we only discussed metalwork, I never really studied ore as much as I studied smithing and forging." Yang looked around the room until her gaze fell onto the shelf of references that she no longer referred to. "I did however, read the book that your father gave to me as a gift." Yang walked over to the shelf, stood on her tippy-toes, and retrieved the book. She turned around to hand the book to Geoffrey who began to quickly scan through the book's contents. "It's an encyclopedia about the ores found within the Kingdom and their properties."

Geoffrey flipped the pages faster and faster. "No, this is impossible." Yang stood next to Geoffrey and looked down at the book. Geoffrey flipped to the previous page and pointed at the picture at the top right corner of the page. "This picture is clearly that of black shale, but the properties listed is that of hematite, the ore you think you're buying."

"W-what are you trying to say? That your father gave me an inaccurate book?"

Geoffrey shook his head. "It doesn't make any sense. I don't know why he would do this to you." The Guard gestured to Yang. "I mean, the man practically brags about you being his unofficial apprentice! Why would he lie about ore identification and then sell you bags of ore that are wrongly labeled?"

Yang was silent now. She touched her neck, and then her belly. Her eyes grew moist as she desperately tried to deny the truth that had already began to dawn on her.

"Geoffrey!", a gruff voice called.

The guard turned around to see his father, Olaf running towards the shop. "Father?"

The man slapped two hands powerfully down on his son's shoulders. "Why are you here? I told you that I could repair your equipment!"

Geoffrey eyed his father suspiciously. "But why? You always said that Yang had surpassed you in skill."

Olaf flinched, hard. He pulled Geoffrey in closer. "I can do this for free!" The senior blacksmith's gaze dropped down to Geoffrey's hands and a look of horror appeared on his face when he saw the book.

"Geoffrey, did you-?" Olaf pointed a shaking finger at the still mute Yang.

"I came for simple repairs, father." Geoffrey then flashed the open book to his father. "I left with something more than just a fixed sword." He pointed at Olaf. "You've been lying to Yang about ore identification." He narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "Why?

"This is none of your business son. Come with me, we're leaving."

"You haven't answered my question", Geoffrey said articulately. "Why did you sell to Yang, bags of wrongly labeled ore?"

"I said we're going home, _immediately!"_, Olaf shouted.

Geoffrey shook his head. "I don't believe it. How could you do this?" Olaf attempted to grab his son's shoulder, but Geoffrey easily side-stepped out of his reach. "This is fraud. Fraud, father! You have not only jeopardized our family's reputation, but you've committed a serious crime, and you also hurt Yang's business severely!" Geoffrey drew the sword and pointed it up against Olaf's sweaty, double chin. "Tell me." He inhaled sharply. "The truth."

"Geoffrey, my good son." Olaf's voice turned soft. "I did this for our family. A man. A man approached me, he said that if I did what he told me to do, he'd reward me with a large sum of Lien! I've done this for you and your mother all this time."

"Pig's shit."

"What?"

"Pig's shit. You took a bribe to increase your wealth. In addition, reselling the lesser ore to Yang increases your profit _again_."

"_Our _wealth, Geoffrey! _Our_ wealth!"

"Which is why you've grown fatter with the beer you drink at the tavern while you haven't told mother or I", the guard spat out as he pulled a rope out from his belt. In one swift maneuver, Geoffrey was behind Olaf, binding his hands together. "Being my father doesn't mean you get to evade the law." He then kicked his father's calves from behind, causing him to fall to his knees with a cry of pain. "Stay right there, if you know what's good for you."

"Geoffrey! Geoffrey! Let me go!"

Geoffrey walked over to Yang who remained in the exact same position. Her eyes were wide open, and a steady stream of tears flowed down her cheeks. "Yang?" There was no response. The blacksmith simply stood there, looking straight ahead. "Yang, I'm going to bring my father in. I'll be back, I promise." Yang remained silent. "I'm sorry." The guard picked up his helmet, suited up, and walked back to the front of the shop to collect his wailing father.

"Damn you Yang! I only helped you because of the money! You're just a worthless, orphaned whore who only got to where you are today because of me! I'm the best blacksmith in Vermilion! Me! Not you, me!" Despite being physically strong, it was difficult for Geoffrey to properly retrain his much heavier father. Yang's scarf suddenly slid down her neck slightly, revealing the healing red and purple bite marks. Olaf caught sight of it and licked his lips provocatively. "And by the looks of it, Thrush sure did have a good time with you!"

Geoffrey spotted two guards around the corner carrying out a night patrol. "Guards!", he called out. One of them turned around and tapped the other before the both of them came bolting over, hands on the handles of their swords.

"Geoffrey?" One of the guards lifted up his visor. It was Jaune Arc.

"Yes, it's me. Who's your partner, Jaune?"

"Gregory, at your service!" the suited man replied crisply.

"Alright. Jaune, Gregory, I need your help in bringing this man to Garrison headquarters."

"Yang?" Jaune looked worriedly at the crying blacksmith. "Is she alright?"

"I need you to focus, Jaune. It's complicated", Geoffrey said grimly.

The guards and Olaf soon disappeared into the shadows, and the sound of grunts and retorts soon faded as well.

A few minutes passed before Yang's knees began to buckle. It wasn't long before the blacksmith fell to her knees and began to vomit violently. She curled into a ball and began to sob. Waves of nausea and anger washed over the blacksmith repeatedly, as she went back and forth between vomiting and cries of pure misery.

* * *

Today was a great day for Ruby. She managed to sell her skinned rabbits fairly quickly at the market, meaning she got to go home to Yang earlier. She collected the payment from Nora and managed to get her hands on a loaf of Yang's favorite bread. And to top it off, Yang had a present for her from Blake. The Huntress grinned and began to hum to herself as she skipped through the quiet streets.

The Autumn festival was coming up soon, and now that they were 2,100 Lien wealthier, surely the two of them could afford the day off to spend some quality time with their closest friends.

Ruby blushed at the thought. The group of friends had attended many Autumn festivals together, and it truly was a wonderful experience each year. They would make silly faces at Jaune Arc as he stood guard at the events, while he would be forced to remain focused. Yang and Pyrrha would participate again in the local sports tournament. Yang would always win in arm wrestling and boxing, while Pyrrha always triumphed in javelin throwing and archery. Cardin Winchester was the repeating champion in heavy lifting. Afterwards while Yang went off to enjoy the festival with Blake, Ruby would tag along with Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie. The attraction between the baker and butcher was easy to spot, and much to Ren's desperate pleas, Ruby always left him alone to face the wrath of Nora's flirtatious advances. Ruby often ended up by herself at the festivals, but it didn't bother her at all. She was the youngest of the group, and she prioritized the happiness of her friends with the argument that she had more years of youth to enjoy than they did.

_Tap tap tap_. Ruby continued to smile to herself, as she dreamed about how much fun the Autumn Festival was. _Tap tap tap_. The Huntress stopped humming and trained her ears to the noise. Whatever it was, it was getting louder. Ruby stopped in her tracks and looked around her. There was no one in sight, but she still couldn't sense where the location was coming from. Slightly alarmed, Ruby drew her knife. She squinted as she saw three figures approaching from the south, advancing rapidly towards her. Ruby took a step backward. _Robbers?_ Ruby looked around, there were no Guards in sight and she wasn't so sure she could take on three assailants-_oh. _She sighed relief when the three figures stepped into the light and revealed themselves to be Guards.

"Out of the way, please!", the lead guard shouted.

Ruby backed out of their way just in time as the three guards rushed past her, before making a sharp left into a darker street. Curious, Ruby decided to follow them. She sheathed her knife and trotted after the men and made the same left. In front of her huddled a group of six or so Guards. Lanterns in the square formation illuminated a section of the street. In the center of it all stood the red-haired leader of the Garrison. _Commander Pyrrha! _

Ruby dashed forward to see what the Commander of the Garrison was up to. As she got closer, her panting and footsteps attracted the attention of one of the guards.

He turned around and put up a hand. "Please take another route, miss!", he called out.

"What's going on here?", Ruby asked curiously.

The guard repeated himself. "Miss, please turn-"

Pyrrha put a hand on the Guard's forearm. "It's okay. I'll handle this."

The Guard nodded and returned to his position among the other guards. Ruby stopped a few paces away from Pyrrha and motioned towards the guards. "Is there something wrong, Pyrrha?"

Pyrrha sighed. "There has been a murder, Ruby."

"M-murder?", the Huntress squeaked.

"I hope you haven't had supper yet." Pyrrha turned around. "Alfonse, step aside please."

"Yes, Commander", the guard in the middle obeyed and stepped out-of-the-way.

Ruby opened her mouth to scream, but nothing came out but a quiet gag. Pyrrha put a hand on Ruby's shoulder and gently squeezed it. "He was Jonathan Corbon of the Vermilion Miner's Guild."

"Who-who could have done this?", Ruby asked, horror in her eyes. She had been desensitized to animal insides and their blood, but this was different. This was a man. The amount of blood that had soaked the dirt around him was ridiculous. The major arteries must have been severed to cause that amount of damage.

Pyrrha looked to her guards, who were furiously taking notes onto rolls of parchment, careful not to tread on the evidence. "We're trying to figure it out. The man's Lien pouch wasn't stolen. In fact nothing is missing from the man it seems. For now we are ruling out robbery." Pyrrha pointed at the blood-stained loaves of bread. "We may think that the Valkyries may shine more light onto this atrocity."

Ruby looked at the bread by the man's hands, and sure enough, they were neatly wrapped up in wax-paper that had the Valkyrie family insignia on it. "Guards! Stay here, I'm going to walk Ruby back home."

"Yes, Commander!", the guards replied in unison.

Pyrrha held Ruby's shaking hand as they turned away from the bloody crime scene.

* * *

The Huntress and Commander moved on to more cheerful subjects on their way back home to _Celica Ironworks_. Ruby told the story about how she managed to catch the 2,100 Lien buck, and expressed her happiness that the annual Autumn Festival was arriving. In reciprocation, Pyrrha teased Ruby by saying that she still owed the Garrison 50 Lien for the time she passed through without proper identification. In the span of close to ten minutes, Pyrrha had Ruby giggling and in positive spirits, despite what she had just seen prior. That was why Ruby appreciated Pyrrha. She was kind, supportive, and despite the need for her to act more mature for her age, the Commander had no problem reverting back to her usual humorous self.

When they reached _Celica Ironworks_, Pyrrha departed after a tight embrace and a quick reminder to be careful when traveling alone and to report any and all suspicious behavior to her, or any other of the village Guards. After Pyrrha disappeared into the night, Ruby quickly unlocked the front door and rushed inside.

A single candle illuminated the kitchen, meaning that Yang still hadn't come in yet: it must have been a busy day for her. Ruby set her bag down and retrieved the now combined Lien from Nora and the rabbits and set them onto the kitchen counter. She returned to carefully removed the small gift before tip-toeing to the back of the house to put her ear against the door. She heard Yang's grunts and the sound of the burning furnace. Ruby spent a few moments practicing her smile, and to rid her mind of the crime scene. She wouldn't allow something like that ruin the mood between her family. She inhaled and exhaled.

_Crash!_ "Surprise, Yang!", Ruby cried out cheerfully as she burst through the door.

Yang turned around. "Hi, Ruby." She stepped away from the furnace and readjusted her scarf. "Did you just get home?"

"Yep! And guess what?" Ruby made her best cute expression.

Yang smiled. "What is it, Ruby?"

"I got the payment from Nora, _annnddd-"_

Yang's eyes softened, as her smile faded gently. "And?"

Ruby brought out her hands from behind her and fell to one knee and lifted the small box up to Yang in the most over-dramatic way she thought possible. "Gift from Blake!"

Yang grabbed a wet towel and wiped her soot-covered hands and face before accepting the small box with trembling hands. Yang's fingers caressed the onyx-colored ribbon neatly tied on top of the box. She looked up at her grinning sister. "You did the errands for me."

"Yep!"

"Nora's payment-"

"Yep!

"-a-and Blake..."

"Yep!"

The gold-haired blacksmith examined the box, turning it over to admire the beautiful ribbon used to tie the lid to the base.

"And don't worry Yang", Ruby cupped her hands and put them over her eyes to mimic a telescope. "I didn't peek at all!"

Yang stepped forward and pulled Ruby into a tight embrace. Ruby rested her head against her sister's chest as she returned the embrace. "I love you Ruby", Yang whispered quietly into Ruby's ear. "I love you so much." Ruby looked up to see tears flowing down Yang's face.

"Yang, what's wrong?" Ruby asked worriedly.

Yang laughed and wiped her eyes. "I'm just an emotional crybaby who happens to have the best sister this cruel world could possibly offer." Yang kissed Ruby's forehead and caressed her cheeks. "Thank you, Ruby. For doing everything you do."

The Huntress grabbed the towel from Yang's other hand and wiped her face with it. "There's more where that came from! Ruby squeezed Yang's shoulders and stepped back. "I'm going to make you a delicious supper, and you're going to worship me even more!" The Huntress struck a pose she learned from Nora, and put her hands on her hips while she laughed villainously.

Yang playfully stuck out her tongue. "Try me."

Ruby dashed into the house, giggling. Yang walked to the door and closed it. "You forgot to close the door, silly."

Yang returned to the furnace and shoveled more coal into the fire, followed by several air pumps. As the flames shot upwards, greedily consuming the fresh fuel, Yang stepped backwards to the work bench. She set the box down and slowly untied the ribbon. Yang let out a quiet "Oh", as she realized what was inside the box.

The blacksmith's rough fingers tenderly pulled out a headband with an black silk ribbon on top. Yang's tears returned as she carefully tucked the headband into her thick hair, and secured it behind her ears. At the bottom of the box, was a neatly folded piece of paper. Yang unfolded the paper and read quietly to herself. Blake had beautiful handwriting.

* * *

_My Dearest Yang Xiao Long, _

_Do you remember last year's Autumn Festival? I remember every single moment. I remember the moment my fiery dragon claimed the title of champion in her favorite categories in the sports tournament. Afterwards, you were so busy bragging to me that you didn't realize that you had a slight concussion. As soon as you blacked out, I managed to get your incredibly heavy body to a secluded hay stack. (I'm joking, I find your physique very attractive) _

_Do you remember Yang? I was running my hands through your hair when all of sudden, your eyes opened. You said to me, and to this day I remember each and every word you said to me. "Blake, I don't want to forget about you." And just like that, you went back to sleep. When you awoke no more than thirty minutes later, you didn't seem to remember what you had said to me. A little ironic don't you think?_

_It's okay. I forgive you Yang, I always do. In anticipation of this month's Autumn Festival, I have personally replicated my bow just for you. When you wear it, my one and only wish is that you will not forget about me. I look forward to seeing you in the bow, Yang. You always said that it added to my beauty. It will do the same for you. I know so. _

_Yours truly, _

_Blake Belladonna_

* * *

Yang folded the note back into its original square form and gently inserted back into its box. She next took the bow off and placed it into the box.

The tears had stopped.

Yang pulled the ribbon out of her pocket and re-tied the box in the same fashion. She took the box inside and quietly passed by Ruby, who was humming to herself as she prepared supper. In her room upstairs, Yang approached her bookshelf. Directly in the center was a small framed oil painting. Yang had paid a painter to paint Blake and Yang together. Blake was blushing while Yang played with her bow. The blacksmith gently set the box down directly beside the painting before disappearing downstairs again.

Once back in the blacksmith's house, she cracked her knuckles and began to crank the air pump to the furnace viciously.

* * *

Thrush tossed a bag of Lien at the half-naked woman by the foot of his bed. "Now get out of here." The woman put on her blouse and buttoned it quickly before grabbing the bag and exciting the room, the sound of her footsteps down the stairwell slowly faded into the night.

Thrush leaned back in the bed and chuckled to himself. It was a good day. The delicious girl's name was Elizabeth, who offered her body to Thrush in exchange for 300 Lien to help her brother's struggling tailor business. He took a long swig of the beer from the mug besides him. When empty, he threw it onto the floor. _Better catch some sleep_ he thought to himself, _there's many things to do tomorrow_. Thrush let out a loud burp before drifting off to sleep.

He dreamed of his favorite girls that had paid him visits over the years for the most delicious reasons. Camilia stepped into his lair to pay bail for her convicted friend. Celestine did it to buy her dead father a casket after he was killed at the wall. Lunet did it to buy food for her children. And then there was Yang.

The golden-haired blacksmith of Vermilion. Thrush dreamt about the first time she had approached him to strike up a deal. She always rejected his advances with a flair he had not seen in any of the girls he had known previously. Her adamancy excited Thrush. It made him lust her even more as she wasn't going to be easy. But like all girls, she eventually gave in. The feeling of pure ecstasy coursed through his veins the first time she approached him that one night she missed her mortgage payment for the third time in a row.

Her once impenetrable defenses had vanished, and the white flag was flying high in the air: Thrush was free to take her innocence.

He felt a pair of thighs around his hips. Oh, he liked this. There was a familiar weight to it, but it soon dawned to him. It wasn't a dream anymore. Thrush opened his eyes as his eyes struggled to focus.

"Well, this is quite the surprise", Thrush said as he licked his lips.

Sitting directly on top of him was a barely clothed Yang Xiao Long. Her usual work outfit was gone, and now she simply wore what seemed to be bandages wrapped around her body. "What's the matter, Yang? Miss our time together already?" Yang stared blankly back at Thrush. Thrush grinned. "Well, seeing how you're not speaking at all, I guess it means I'm free to do this!" Thrush put his hands on Yang's thighs and moved his hands freely across her skin.

"Hmph."

Yang brought her hands out from behind her quickly jabbed at Thrush's hands. The sound of fingers snapping reverberated in the small room followed by the smell of burnt flesh.

"GAAA!" Thrush shrieked as he brought up his hands to his face, his steaming fingers were bent horribly out of shape. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?" He looked up to see Yang wielding a steel pair of Cestus on both hands, with the contact plate glowing bright red.

Still with a blank expression on her face, Yang leaned in close to Thrush and whispered into his ear.

"I burn."

* * *

**Happy Halloween!**


End file.
